Day & Night?
by Monie
Summary: Chapter 16 is up! DMxHG with a cunning twist. Will be unlike any other DMxHG! Is Rita Skeeter telling the truth?
1. Default Chapter

None of the characters are my own etc.. The story line is mine.  
  
This is a Hermione/Draco romance with action and adventure added to give it spice. R/R! If you like it, tell me and I'll write more. Read and enjoy!! :-P  
  
1 Chapter 1. The Dream  
  
She was beside a lake. Hogwarts lake. She could see him standing in the shadow of a great weeping willow. He was tall, very tall. Slim. He had white blonde hair with silver highlights that she could just make out. He was dressed all in black. Black jeans, black shirt. The shirt had a high collar that framed his face perfectly. The black of the clothes brought out the extreme paleness of his skin.  
  
It was a beautiful day. The sky was the kind of blue that you link with babies, the sun was a gold disk in the sky, shining down upon her, warming her. There should not be so much shadow around him, she thought. She looked back at the tree, its' long branches protecting him. He was oddly familiar. His blonde hair, pale skin, the arrogant way in which he held himself. A name came to her lips. Malfoy. Draco Malfoy. What's he doing here, she thought, but any questions she might have had were pushed to the back of mind when he started to walk toward her.  
  
He was saying something. Monie. Who's Monie, she wondered. He stopped in front of her, reached out to her, touched her hair.  
  
The weather changed drastically. The sky turned black and lightning streaked across the sky like angry, jagged slashes ripping it open. Rain pored down, soaking them in an instant. The wind howled. Her hair blew up into her face. She reached up to push it back but Malfoy stopped her, did it himself.  
  
'What are you doing here?' she yelled, trying to be heard over the wind.  
  
He said something, but a clap of thunder drowned it out. He reached out and pulled her to him. He buried his face in her hair and started to cry. Malfoy crying was to much for her to understand. What was even harder to understand was the overpowering need to comfort him. She wrapped her arms around his shuddering body, trying to pour some of her warmth into him.  
  
'Malfoy, what's wrong?' she asked softly.  
  
'No time. Remember this; don't go to the Christmas ball. Please, no matter what anyone says, don't go!' he breathed into her hair.  
  
'Wh.what Christmas ball? You're not making any sense. What are you talking about?'  
  
'Don't ask questions, just do it, please! I can't lose you! I just can't!'  
  
She was having trouble focusing on him; it was like he was fading around the edges.  
  
'Malfoy, what's happening to you? What are you talking about, I don't understand!!' she mumbled into his chest.  
  
He stood back from her, fading even more. When his voice came to her, it was as if from a great distance.  
  
'Please Monie, Don't go to the ball. I can't risk it, I can't lose you...'  
  
She looked into his pale blue eyes, usually full of hate, now brimming with..love and..pain. He was nearly completely faded away now. The last thing she heard, before he vanished, was his voice, ' Remember Monie, remember.I love you..'  
  
Malfoy disappeared.  
  
Hermione woke up. 


	2. Hogwarts

A/N Sorry I didn't say this before. This fic takes off after GoF. They're in 5th year. The summary isn't false, I'm getting into it soon! Thanks for the reviews :-D  
  
Chapter 2. Hogwarts.  
  
Hermione could only remember fragments of her dream. A stranger, wind, rain, Malfoy..love? Weird dream she thought, helping herself to a bowl of Corn Flakes. Why am I dreaming about that flobberworm?  
  
She sat down at the table and picked up her copy of The Daily Prophet.  
  
MALFOY, DEAD OR ALIVE??? Screamed the headline.  
  
Underneath there was a picture of L.Malfoy, sneering up at her. She read on:  
  
Malfoy, an ex-deatheater, has vanished. He was last seen by his wife a week ago. 'He said he had to see someone about business' Mrs Malfoy sniffed, delicately wiping her nose with a hanky. 'He sent an owl the day after he went. He said he would be back the next day as the meeting hadn't gone the way he planned. He didn't come back and he hasn't sent an owl to me. He knows how I get when I don't know where he is!' she said softly, tears coming to her eyes. 'He knows I get scared..' the tears finally spill over, rolling down a smooth cheek.  
  
Is Malfoy in trouble? As we all know, he was one of the many wizards and witches that followed He Who Must Not Be Named. Who was he meeting? Why did it go wrong? Draco Malfoy was not available to interview.  
  
Watch this space for more. I, Rita Skeeter, will get to the bottom of this!  
  
Hermione stared at the paper in shock. Dracos' father, missing? Something fishy was going on. And knowing her luck, it would involve Harry.  
  
'There goes my nice, normal year.again' she said to her Corn Flakes.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Hermione sat waiting for Harry and Ron on platform 9. Usually, she would have went through to platform 9 ¾, but she needed help getting her trunk, vanity case (cleverly disguised as a handbag), book bag and Crookshanks out of her parents car. She would defiantly need help getting them onto the train.  
  
She laughed to herself. Me, having a vanity case? Who would have thought?  
  
Over the summer, she had regularly visited Diagon Valley. On one particular day, she had found a new shop. Not knowing what it sold, she went in. From that day, she had been a different Hermione. At first, it was the bottle of Nancy-Norse-no-Frizz. She reached up and touched her hair. It was smooth and sleek for the second time in her life. Then it was the Luscious-lip- Lipstick. After that it was Long-Lash-lotion, Baby-Bright-eye, Nancy-Norse- Nice-Nails and Smooth-Skin-solution. She had about every colour that the shop sold. This year, she thought, no one will make fun of my looks.  
  
'I can't see her anywhere' said a familiar voice. Hermione looked around. Harry and Ron were standing about a meter away and they couldn't see her. Boys!!  
  
'Hello Ron' she drawled 'looking for me?'  
  
Harry and Ron stared open-mouthed at her. It was making her feel self- conscious. She may have changed her look, but she was still the nose-in-the- book, in-the-library. Miss-know-it-all Hermione Granger.  
  
'Wh.you..hey Hermione' stuttered Ron, going bright red. 'We were looking for you.'  
  
'I guessed. Why'd it take you so long to find me?' she asked.  
  
'Your hair, it's changed...we didn't notice you with normal ha-OW!! Why'd you poke me Harry?!'  
  
Hermione glared at Ron.  
  
'So you're saying that you didn't notice me with normal hair. You're saying that the only reason you could find me before was because of my hair!!'  
  
'I'm...sorry. It was a shock, that's all. It's really nice. You look great, better than ever. Have I grovelled enough yet?' Ron asked.  
  
Hermione and Harry burst out laughing. It was getting harder and harder to stay made at Ron. He made them laugh to much.  
  
'Yes you have.well, nearly. I'll forgive you if you bring all of my back through to the platform and put them on for me.' She said, trying to hide her grin.  
  
'Ok, ok. Just never say I don't do anything for you!' Ron grumbled.  
  
Harry, feeling sorry for Ron, decided to help him. The casually walked, well, as casually as you can carrying three trunks and any extra they had!, and disappeared through the wall.  
  
Hermione was just about to do the same when Crookshanks gave an almighty leap, and got out of his travel cage.  
  
'Crookshanks no! Get back here. CROOKSHANKS!!!' Hermione yelled, not noticing that people had stopped to stare.  
  
She dropped the cage and gave chase.  
  
'When I get my hands on you I'll.I'll..' She shouted at the fleeing cat.  
  
She was gaining on him. He was never a long distance runner, or walker for that matter! She got ready to pounce when..WHAM!!! She had ran straight into somebody and was now tangled up with them on the floor. She got up and grabbed Crookshanks as he tried to jump over her.  
  
'You silly cat!' she breathed.  
  
She looked down to find the person she ran into already getting up.  
  
'I am SO sorry. My cat got out of his cage and I was afraid I'd lose him and-'  
  
'Oh shut up Granger!' the person said. 'Your stupid cat got away and you wanted to get him back. Don't need to make a novel out of it!'  
  
Hermione looked at the man standing in front of her and gasped.  
  
Oh no!, she thought, of all the people in the train station, of all the people on this platform, I have to run into this one.  
  
'I said I was sorry' she said defiantly.  
  
'Not yet' he sneered 'but you will be'  
  
And with that Draco Malfoy turned and walked away. 


	3. The Train

A/N Thanks for all the great reviews!! I'm so happy :-D Big thanks to Laura! I'm gonna read those fanfics you printed off ASAP.  
  
1 Chapter 3 The Train  
  
Hermione climbed onto the Hogwarts Express and went straight to the last carriage. They, namely Harry, Ron and herself, has adopted it as their own the first time they ever boarded the train.  
  
She opened the carriage door and sat down next to Ron.  
  
'Why'd you take so long?' he inquired 'You almost missed the train!'  
  
'Oh. I um.bumped into someone' she stammered.  
  
'Yeah well, anyway, we have to fill Harry in on the Malfoy story. Remember, the Dursleys won't let him have anything to do with 'his freak friends' during the summer holls.' Said Ron with a grin.  
  
'What?' asked Harry.  
  
'What? What he asks! Oh nothing, just that Lucis Malfoy is DEAD!' stated Ron in a matter of fact tone of voice.  
  
'No he's not' interjected Hermione. 'He's just missing.'  
  
Ron and Hermione proceeded to have an argument about whether or not Lucis Malfoy was dead.  
  
'Well actually,' said Harry over the din 'I already know.'  
  
This stopped the squabbling immediately.  
  
'Wh.but. SIRUS!' they said in unison.  
  
'Yeah, he told me all about it, more than the papers know in fact. Remember, if I don't write to Sirus, he might get worried and visit me. I don't think Uncle Vernon would like to meet Sirus when he's worried about me, or in a bad mood!' Harry said slyly.  
  
Ron and Hermione burst into laughter..just as someone came into the carriage. That someone was Draco Malfoy.  
  
'I'm so glad that you find my fathers disappearance amusing.' he said coldly.  
  
'I. we. we weren't laughing at that' stammered Hermione.  
  
At the same time, Ron said defiantly 'So what if we were? It serves him right!'  
  
The whole carriage suddenly went cold. Draco, who was pale by nature, paled even more.  
  
'What did you say Weasly?' asked Malfoy quietly.  
  
For some reason, Malfoy being quiet and not shouting his head off, reaching for his wand, was disturbing.  
  
It's because Crabbe and Goyle are not with him. Please let it be because they're not with him, Hermione prayed silently.  
  
'I. I. I said he would deserve it' stammered Ron in a weak voice.  
  
I guess I'm not the only one who's feeling a little bit nervous, she thought.  
  
'For once Weasly,' said Malfoy ' You may be right' and with a whoosh of black robes, he was gone.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
'What, was that all about?' asked Harry, letting out a breath.  
  
'I don't know,' replied Hermione 'but I intend to find out.'  
  
Hermione walked out of the carriage, following Malfoy before the others could protest. She didn't know why, but she had a bad feeling about all of this, this. well, this weirdness.  
  
She reached the carriage that usually held Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle, and barged in.  
  
'What, no manners Granger? I guess mudbloods don't know what real manners are' spat Malfoy.  
  
Hermione thought that he was getting way to angry about something so small.  
  
'Listen, I. I.I want to apologise again for bumping into you, and for what you think you heard us laughing about.' She said in a rush. Her desire to find out what was wrong with him had vanished with his, ahem, warm welcome.  
  
'No you didn't' he said.  
  
'I didn't?' asked a confused Hermione.  
  
'No, Granger, you came to ask me about my father. He's missing yes, but not for a week, oh no, more like a month. There's something to tell you, friends.' He said the last word as if it had a bad taste.  
  
'Now please leave, I'll be seeing enough of you in school.'  
  
'What do you mean? We only have six lessons together. It's not like we're in the same house!' said Hermione.  
  
'You don't know yet. Well, let me burst you bubble Miss Prefect. I'm head of Slytherin. Since you're head of Griffindor, we'll be spending quite some time together.' Malfoy informed her with a sneer.  
  
Oh no, she thought, we'll have to meet at least three times a week and weekends and class time. What have I done to deserve this? She whined to herself. Malfoy talking again brought her out of her thoughts.  
  
'I like what you've done to your hair, Granger.'  
  
A compliment, from Malfoy. This day was getting more strange by the minute.  
  
'Yeah, it really brings out the shape, or lack of it rather, of your nose. It is what Muggles call, a button-nose, yes? Know I know why' he snickered.  
  
Ah, she thought, my day has just changed from being strange, to being almost normal. Malfoy teasing her, ah, the joy of Hogwarts. She smiled at the thought.  
  
'What are you smiling about? You Muggles are a weird lot. Now go. You're really starting to annoy me.'  
  
'Yeah yeah, I'm going' said Hermione, still grinning.  
  
Don't you laugh at me! Don't you dare! Yelled Malfoy, going red. 'You're still going to pay for knocking into me! Do you hear me Granger? You'll pay!'  
  
Seeing Malfoy get so worked up just because she laughed at him warmed her heart. I've got you Malfoy, she though. I now know how to get at YOU. And with one last joyous burst of laughter, she left Malfoy fuming to himself in his carrige.  
  
A/N I'm hoping to get a few more reviews before I continue. Thanks ( 


	4. The Dorm

Disclaimer: The characters are J.K.R's. The plot is mine. Miss Clarke, Laura and Sean are mine. Yay! I made up some characters!!  
  
  
  
A/N So sorry it's taken me ages to post. To make up for it, this chapter is really long.  
  
  
  
Chapter 4 The Dorm.  
  
  
  
They arrived at Hogwarts and went straight to the main hall. The first years were being sorted already. The excitement and fear in the room was almost tangible.  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione sat down in their usual places at the Gryffindor table and started to talk.  
  
"So. what did you mean when you said you know more about what happened to Malfoys' father than the papers did?" inquired Ron in a low voice.  
  
"Well" began Harry "Sirus, as you know, writes to me a lot. One day he asked me to meet him in my back garden at 12 o'clock. He said he had something interesting to tell me. I went out to meet him and-"  
  
"Ace, Hannah - Gryffindor!"  
  
"Blake, Alic - Ravenclaw!"  
  
"-He told me all about Malfoy father going missing. The papers were told that he was on a business trip. What they weren't told was that it was with-"  
  
"Doyle, Sarah - Hufflepuff!"  
  
"Flab, Manny - Slytherin!"  
  
"-Some guy called 'Frost'"  
  
"Frost?" repeated Hermione in a hushed whisper. "I've heard of him. He was a teacher in that American school.um.Muir High I think. He taught-"  
  
"DaDA" Harry butted back in, a little annoyed that someone else new who Frost was. "But people don't know that he was one of Voldemorts most loyal followers."  
  
"Shhh.Harry, I thought we talked about this." Ron looked around, obviously very perplexed. The mention of the name Voldemort had raised quite a few inquisitive heads. People were beginning to stare.  
  
"Harry, I think you should finish telling us later." Said Hermione, also glancing about.  
  
"Yeah, well.ok than." said Harry going red. No matter what anyone said, he really didn't like being the centre of attention.  
  
"Gentry, Caroline - Gryffindor!"  
  
Goyle, Linda - Slytherin!"  
  
Oh no! thought Hermione. Goyle has a sister!  
  
The sorting continued.  
  
"O'Connell, Carmel - Ravenclaw!"  
  
"Price, Katie - Hufflepuff!"  
  
Hermione looked around at all of the new faces. There were quite a few Gryffindors, Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs, but only about twelve new Slytherins.  
  
Bet Malfoy is annoyed she thought, looking at the Slytherin table. She caught sight of Malfoy. He was staring at her. They stared at each other for what seemed to be forever. He looks sad, and tired. Must be hard to lose a father. Well, not know if you've lost a father, even one like Lucius Malfoy, she thought wryly.  
  
The beginning of Professor Dumbledores speech broke the moment of eye contact.  
  
1 "Hello, and welcome to Hogwarts! *Big Cheers! * There is going to be a difference to this school year. I'm not permitted to tell you what it is yet but I can give you a clue. Do you want a clue?" *Screams of YES! * "Ok then! Here it is: It's going to be different!"  
  
2 This answer was followed by groans and boos.  
  
3 "Now, to get on with things. Firstly, could the prefects from each house please come with me after the feast? Secondly, we have a new DaDA teacher with us. Please give a warm Hogwarts welcome to Miss Clarke!"  
  
4 Everyone stared at the new teacher. She was young, maybe 24-25, black hair, dark skin, dark eyes, slim. A real beauty. She smiled shyly and gave a little wave. What happened next was astronomical. Feet stamping, cheers, yells, wolf whistles. The loudest of course from the Wesley twins, Fred and George.  
  
5 "Thirdly" yelled Dumbledore over the din "The Forbidden Forest was given the name for a reason. It's forbidden. Anyone found to be in there will die a horrible horrible death.  
  
6 Fourthly, over the summer I met a friend of mine. Well actually-"  
  
He was cut short by the entrance of Professor Snape. No one, it seems, noticed his absence.  
  
"Poor Snape. Yet another chance of getting the job, gone." Said Harry sarcastically.  
  
Everyone knew that Snape wanted to teach DaDA more than anything. He walked over to the teachers' table and sat down at his place. His place just happened to be beside Miss Clarke.  
  
Surprisingly, Snape didn't look his greasy, ugly sneering self. He looked. he looked. well, he almost looked good looking! Even more surprising was the cheeky wink he gave her, and the even cheekier grin returned by Miss Clarke. Dumbledore was right. This year was certainly turning out to be different.  
  
Hermione looked around. Everyone seemed to be acting normally. No one was staring open-mouthed, no pointing, no wolf whistles - Nothing! What everyone was doing, however, was digging into the pile of food that had appeared on the plates and in the bowls on the tables. She was just about to start eating herself when she felt as though she was being watched. She had that skin crawling feeling running down her back, the cold shivers, the desirable urge to turn around. She looked up from her plate as casually as she could and saw - Draco Malfoy. Draco Malfoy, staring at her. He winked, turned away and started to eat. Hermione, to shocked to do or say anything, tucked into her food.  
  
  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
  
  
When everyone had finished, Dumbledore called for the four prefects to leave the hall with him. He led them down corridors that Hermione never new existed.  
  
"Um.Professor?" asked Hermione hesitantly, "Where are we going?"  
  
"All will be revealed in due course Miss Granger" replied Dumbledore with a twinkle in his eye.  
  
He walked ahead of Hermione then, leaving her to walk with Draco Malfoy. The other two prefects were Laura Kane from Ravenclaw and Sean Mohan from Hufflepuff. Laura was a bright girl, but had an unhealthy obsession with most muggle rock bands. Laura was a muggle and proud of it.  
  
Sean was cute, kind of dopey looking, but cute all the same. Hermione didn't know very much more about the two, only that they had been going steady since second year. They were walking so close together that they looked like one person.  
  
"Cute" said a voice in her ear.  
  
She turned to see Malfoy standing so close to her that she could feel a line of heat along her right side where he was.  
  
She expected to see a sneer on his face, but she only saw neutrality.  
  
"Yeah" she whispered back, "Cute." She continued walking, picking up the pace. Turning around a corner, she nearly bumped into Prof. Dumbledore. He was standing beside a painting of four people about their ages, each one dressed in a houses colours.  
  
"It has come to my attention," Dumbledore started "that prefects have been getting a little.hassle.from the occupants of their houses. This is simply because the houses feel that they cannot relax with a teacher like figure watching over them all of the time. I myself don't see the problem but there is one. Anyway, we have made a separate dorm for the prefects, namely you. This is the entrance. These four charming people are past students. The four first prefects in fact. Now, before you can go in and settle down, you have to think of a password. Any suggestions?"  
  
The prefects turned to each other.  
  
"Any ideas?" asked Sean.  
  
"Linkin Park, Limp Bizkit, Slipknot-" said Laura on a rush, barely pausing between the names.  
  
Hermione smiled to herself as Laura and Sean started to argue about whom to use. Laura was keeping her own. She's certainly full of-  
  
"Spirit" said Hermione, breaking up the heated discussion.  
  
"What? Spirit? That's.that's." spluttered Sean.  
  
"Perfect" said Malfoy in a smooth voice.  
  
"Well, if you're all agreed?" asked Dumbledore.  
  
Any objection was dampened by the scathing look from Malfoy.  
  
"Spirit it is."  
  
The painting opened up to reveal the entrance.  
  
"I'm afraid this is where I have to leave you. I have to show Miss Clarke around. I trust you will find your way around. With that, he walked off down the corridor.  
  
Laura and Sean went in. Malfoy motioned for Hermione to go in before him.  
  
"Ladies first"  
  
Hermione was reluctant to turn her back on him. Nothing big was worrying her, only the little 'I'll get you' incident. Oh well she thought, and climbed in.  
  
When she was in the room, she just couldn't believe her eyes. The room was huge. The décor was magnificent. It was divide into four corners. Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, just like the school crest. She walked into her corner. The walls were red with a gold border going along the top. The carpet was gold. There was an overstuffed chair near the middle of the room where all of the colours met. It was red and had an elegant H on the back.  
  
There was a study desk along one wall and a bookcase along the other. They were both a deep mahogany. The desk was full of writing materials: ink, quills, parchment, gold and red ribbon. The bookcase was half full of books, including: 'Hogwarts: A History.' Good old Dumbledore.  
  
Beside her bookcase were two doors; each had a carved animal on it. Lion and Snake. Gryffindor and Slytherin. Hermione and Draco.  
  
She left her bag on the chair and, not realising that it was open, opened her door and went into the room beyond. The sight that greeted her stopped her dead. She looked around her bedroom. Straight in front of her was a double bed. It had deep red sheets and duvet, red and gold pillows. The wood was the same deep mahogany of the desk and bookcase. Around the bed were gold shimmering curtains that could be drawn to enclose the bed. What she liked most though, was the gold bed throw, folded neatly at the end of the bed. It was warm and soft, and had the Gryffindor crest on it.  
  
There was a vanity table to the left of the bed. Mahogany again. The mirror above it was beautiful. The gold frame had lions carved into it. She ran her hand over the main lion, rearing up over the top of the mirror.  
  
To the right of the bed was a closet. Even more mahogany. She opened the doors to find her robes and muggle clothes already hung up.  
  
Beside the closet was a shelf. What she saw on the shelf was unbelievable. A mini hi-fi. A note was attached. She reached up to get it. Sitting down on her bed, she read it.  
  
  
  
Dear Miss Granger,  
  
The Hi-Fi is bewitched. You can play ordinary music on it but if you press the red button, your room becomes soundproof. Hence, you may practice in peace and also not bother the other occupants.  
  
Yours,  
  
Professor Dumbledore.  
  
  
  
Hermione couldn't believe it. Her parents had told him, even when they promised they wouldn't. Well, at least no one else will know, thought Hermione seeing the bright side.  
  
Standing up, she put the letter in her rode pocket. She looked around again and noticed for the first time the two doors, one on either side of her bed.  
  
The door on her right had another carving on it. Another lion. The one to her left was plain. She went to that one first. She walked in and saw every girls dream bathroom. It had a huge walk in tube, a shower, sink, and behind another door, a toilet. Along one wall there were two closets. She opened the doors, an airing cupboard and shelves full of towels.  
  
She walked over to the bath. There were several taps in the shape of lions. They had names on them: Strawberry, Lemon, Apple, Lavender, and Rose. She turned on the tap named Lavender. The room instantly smelled of lavender. The water was scented. On top of that, the water was blue/purple, along with the bubbles. Can't wait to have a bath, she thought, smiling to herself.  
  
She left the bathroom and opened the last remaining door. She was instantly greeted with the loud, crowded Gryffindor common room. That door was soon closed.  
  
She lay down on her bed and was just going to have a quick nap when she heard yelling coming from the prefect common room. She leapt off the bed and went into the room.  
  
"What is it?" asked Sean looking up at her as she entered.  
  
"What is what?" she replied.  
  
"That" said Laura, pointing to Hermione bag. Hermione looked down at her bag and felt like crying. Her bag was open, they could see it. Or, maybe not. They were straining to see it, but not actually coming into her section.  
  
"Can't you see it?" she asked puzzled.  
  
"No, Malfoy put a spell on you section, we can't go into it." Laura whined. "What is it?"  
  
"It's.it's." stammered Hermione.  
  
"None of your business" stated Malfoy.  
  
"Fine!" said Laura, and with that, she walked off into her room, followed closely by Sean.  
  
Hermione closed her bag and looked over at Malfoy.  
  
"Um.thanks." She said in a smell voice, clutching the bag close to her.  
  
"Don't mention it. I have one too." He stood then and went into his own room.  
  
Hermione, speechless, went to hers. She put the bag on her bed and took it out. Turning around, she pushed the red button on her hi-fi. A little red light went on. She went beck to her bed, took it out of the case put it in position. Hermione stood in front of her mirror and began to play her violin.  
  
Imagine, she thought, Malfoy plays too. Weird.  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N Thanks for all of the great reviews people!! I love you all! I'm going to put up personal thanks with the chapter. Please review! Any suggestions I'm all ears! *Grin *  
  
  
  
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	5. Who's Frost?

Disclaimer: None of the characters are mine etc etc. Well, Miss Clarke, Laura and Sean, so far anyway!!  
  
A/N Thank you all so much for the reviews, they make my day! Personal notes at the end. Oh yeah, a lot of you were a bit confused about the violin, don't worry, it's not going to be Draco playing Hermione love songs or anything. Oh, and one other thing, I never said that Draco was going to be a good boy. *Evil Smirk*  
  
Chapter 5. Who's Frost?…?  
  
Hermione got up really early the next morning. Last night just before going to sleep, she realised that the bathroom wasn't decorated in the usual Gryffindor colours. In fact, it was a mixture of Gryffindor and…Slytherin!! She didn't want to walk in on Malfoy and Visa Versa. She shivered at the thought. Yuck!  
  
She walked over to her closet and took out her robes and underclothes. Black black and even more black. She opened the door to the bathroom and walked in. Malfoy wasn't in there.  
  
"You guessed right," she said to herself as she hung up her clothes on a hook and took out two baby soft towels. "He's a late riser."  
  
Just to be safe though, she locked the door that she reasoned must be Malfoys' entrance. No point taking chances!  
  
She filled the bath with water from the strawberry tap, stepped in and sunk up to her neck. This is the life, she thought smiling.  
  
Seeing a cabinet next to the bath, she reached over and opened it up. One side was obviously hers, the other Malfoys.  
  
Her side was full of different shampoos, conditioners, soaps, bath scrubs and anything else you used in a bath. She took out a shampoo. It was lavender scented. Reaching in again, she took out a strawberry scented conditioner. She realised that there was a set for every tap on the bath.  
  
She looked at Malfoys side. Just as she was about to reach in to see what he had, the door slammed shut.  
  
"Guess we can't us each others stuff." She said, a little shocked.  
  
Well, better get clean, she thought, as she lathered up the bath scrub. The scent of strawberries was overpowering. She loved it.  
  
She scrubbed her hair clean with the shampoo and then massaged the conditioner in. Rinsing it out, she knew that her hair was going to fall like silk down her back when she dried it. Bliss.  
  
Getting out of the bath, she wrapped the fluffy towel around her wet body and sat down in front of the mirror. She plugged in her hairdryer and set about drying her hair. She started humming to herself. I think I'm going to like this year, she thought, just as Malfoys' door opened.  
  
She was going to scream bloody murder, but it caught in her throat. Malfoy was standing in the doorway with nothing but a towel around his waist.  
  
He walked into the room fully, then turned to her.  
  
"You using the shower?" he asked in his trademark drawl.  
  
"N…n…no," stammered Hermione, "I'm not."  
  
He opened the shower door and stepped in. "Good."  
  
Hermione could only stare open-mouthed at the door as the shower was turned on, a towel was flung over the door, and the room began to steam up again.  
  
She unplugged the hairdryer, grabbed her robes and ran into her own room.  
  
What just happened? she thought, re-settling herself down at her own vanity table. She started to dry her hair again. Twenty minutes later, she was dressed and brushing her hair.  
  
One day when she was in Diagon Ally, she had found at the back of the robe shop, some lovely ribbon. It was red with gold trimmings. She bought two of them, thinking she'd wear them at school. Now, looking at them, she wondered if they were too babyish. Looking in the mirror, all she saw was black. She'd wear the ribbon.  
  
Parting her hair straight through, she plaited them and tied them with her ribbon. Opening her make-up bag, she took out her silver eye shadow and brushed some over her eyes so that they shimmered. She put that back and took out her lip-gloss. It was clear and strawberry scented. Yum. Giving herself one last glance in the mirror, she grabbed her book bag, put in the lip-gloss and went down to breakfast.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Hermione was unaware of the stares she got when she walked into the hall for breakfast. Frankly Dill, a 6th year in Hufflepuff, missed his bowl when pouring his milk on his cereal and there was now milk spilling into his lap.  
  
David Green, a 7th year from Ravenclaw gawked at her, open-mouthed with porridge still in his mouth and Nathan Slick, another 7th year but this time in Slytherin, forgot his conversation with the person beside him and just stared. The person beside him was Draco Malfoy. Curious about what had grabbed Nathan's attention so tightly, he looked up and started. Hermione was gliding towards the Gryffindor table, followed closely by the watchful gaze of every male student in the room. Including him. He was mesmerised. He had realised on the train that Hermione was becoming a woman in every sense of the word, but he never thought that he would be thinking of her a Hermione, not Mudblood or Granger.  
  
Hermione sat down, still not noticing anything different in the room and began talking to Harry and Ron.  
  
Malfoy shuck his head, as if trying to clear it. What am I on about? He scolded himself. She will always be Mudblood. Always.  
  
He started eating his food. Why am I not convinced?  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Hermione sat down in between Harry and Ron, reached out for some milk and Corn Flakes and began to eat. She was starving, even after the feast last night.  
  
"Come on Harry," said Ron in a hushed voice, "Finish what you were telling us yesterday. What did Sirus tell you?"  
  
Harry finished swallowing the food in his mouth, made himself comfortable and began where he left off the night before.  
  
"Well, Sirus asked me if I had ever heard of this Frost person. I said no and he told me all about him. He was in league with…" Harry paused not knowing what name to use… "Him."  
  
"Him?" questioned Hermione.  
  
"You know," said Harry, a little annoyed, "HIM"  
  
The other two finally catching on nodded for him to continue.  
  
"When…he…went missing, so did Frost. No one knew where he was. Untill about two months ago. He was seen in London. He was with some woman. They were trying to blend in but, remember at the Quidditch world cup. Hardly any of the older wizards new how to act as muggles. He was like that. A friend of Sirus spotted him and told Sirus."  
  
"What's this got to do with anything?" asked Ron puzzled.  
  
Harry sighed. Ron was his best friend but sometimes…  
  
"Frost was the best of friends with…" Harry paused again, but this time for effect, "…Lucius Malfoy."  
  
Both Ron and Hermione stared silently at Harry. Hermione was the first one to break the silence.  
  
"So, Sirus thinks that Lucius was meeting Frost."  
  
"Yes, but what for, he won't tell me." Said Harry. "not until he's sure himself that is."  
  
They finished there breakfasts and went to their first lesson. On the way, Hermione was pushed into and made drop her books so many times, in the end she gave her bag to Harry and books to Ron.  
  
"These guys really need their eyes checked" Muttered Hermione as once again, she was pushed into.  
  
"HA!" she said into the face of the perpetrator. "No books for you to make me drop. No books for you to pick up!"  
  
The guys mumbled his apologies and scampered off.  
  
"What is all this about?" asked Ron in amazement.  
  
"I," said a flushed Hermione, "have no idea."  
  
  
  
A/N So there you have it. Chapter 5. I'll try to hurry up with the next one. No, I won't try, I WILL!! I said I was going to put up personal A/N's at the end of this chapter but I haven't time. The next one, I promise. Thank you to everyone who has R & R and if you haven't please do. Don't worry Laura, you'll be in it more soon!!  
  
Monie  
  
x 


	6. Couples through History

A/N Thanks for all of the great reviews!! 83 and only five chapters up! I fell so loved *Gush * When I was going through the reviews, I noticed that some of you have reviewed me loads of time so a special thanks to (Drum roll) The Charmed One, Amanda, and of course, Laura! Soz if I missed out on anyone. More thanks at the end! Oh yeah, I've finally got a plot. I think you're going to really like it *Evil grin *  
  
Chapter 6. Couples through History.  
  
Hermiones' first lesson was double Herboligy. It was pretty normal really. Neville over watered a sprog plant and it exploded into his face. He was rushed to the hospital wing with baby sprogs growing out of his head. It's didn't seem that bad at first, just a few green things sprouting from his nose etc, but then those green things grew spikes ½ an inch long and full of poisonous goo. You couldn't really blame the guy for running around the tables screaming at the top of his lungs. Hermione was still laughing about it when she went down to dinner that evening.  
  
She sat down as usual between Harry and Ron. The carried on talking to each other in suppressed voices, totally ignoring her.  
  
"Who are you going to ask?" whispered Ron.  
  
"Umm…I was going to ask Cho but after what happened last year…"Harry trailed off.  
  
"What are you two whispering about?" interrupted Hermione. She hated not knowing what was going on.  
  
"Oh," said Ron, going as red as his hair, "The Halloween ball isn't that far away now so…"  
  
Not far away, thought Hermione, it's still weeks away.  
  
"So…" she prompted.  
  
"So, we're gathering our Gryffindor courage early this year."  
  
Before Hermione could reply, Dumbledore stood up and began to speak.  
  
"Quiet please…thank you. Now, it was brought to my attention by some students that the traditional style of the Halloween Ball has become…tedious, having it year after year. Because of this, I have decided to change the style to something more adventurous. The Ball will have a theme. This year, the theme will be: 'Couples through History.' For example, Anthony and Cloepatra was a famous muggle couple. The couple doesn't have to be based on people. Hot and Cold, for example, is a famous couple. Now, to stop two couples going as the same people, you will find a slip of paper beneath your plate-"  
  
Before he could continue, there was a rush of people lifting, or trying to lift their plates. They seemed to be stuck to the table.  
  
"IF YOU'D LET ME CONTINUE!" boomed Dumbledore. Everyone, including the teachers nearly jumped out of their skin.  
  
"Thank you. Now, where was I? Oh yes. The slip of paper will contain whom or what you MUST go as to the ball. Only you will be able to see what is written on the paper. You will also be given a potion that hides you identity from your partner. Everyone else will be able to see you, and you them. It will be up to yourselves to find you match. At 12 midnight, the potion will wear off. I hope this is satisfactory to those who brought this problem to my attention."  
  
He looked at the Ravenclaw table with a smile.  
  
"Now you may read your slip and-"  
  
Once again he was cut off. Everyone was lifting their plates and reading the slips. Hermione took up her plate and calmly unfolded her paper.  
  
'Day' it said in a flowing elegant script.  
  
Hermione sat back and let all of the hustle and commotion sweep over her.  
  
Day, she thought, Day. The more she thought of it, the more she liked it.  
  
"You must not tell ANYONE what was written on you slip, ANYONE." Judging from the gleam in his eye, he knew that was not going to happen.  
  
Hermione folded the slip of paper and put it into her robe pocket.  
  
"This," she said out loud, "is going to be great!"  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Two days later, it was the visit to the only wizard and which only town in the world, well, that she new of anyway. Hermione was going there with Ginny to get outfits for the Ball. Harry and Ron had been quite annoyed that the two girls wouldn't tell them what they were going to the Ball as. In return, they wouldn't tell either. Hermione and Ginny arrived and made a bee-line for 'Rag n Robes' Ginny had found it the year before. It was dark and old looking on the outside, but inside it was quite the opposite. Robes of every size and colour were everywhere, and surprisingly, every kind of muggle clothing too. And she meant every kind and every era.  
  
Hermione was going to help Ginny pick out an outfit. They both new what the other was going as. The had 'accidentally' written down what was on the slip, they had both 'accidentally' dropped them in front of each other and they had both 'accidentally' picked up the wrong one. That's a lot of accidents, thought Hermione, grinning.  
  
Ginny had got a very famous muggle fantasy character. Beauty, as in Beauty and the Beast. Hermione thought it was perfect for her. Ginny had fell in love with it. Hey, a chance to dress up always pleased Ginny!  
  
They wandered about the shop, each looking for the perfect dress. It was early and no-body else had bothered to go shopping yet. They had the whole shop to themselves. Suddenly, Ginny let out a squeal.  
  
"Herm, look at this!" she cried.  
  
Hermione looked at the dress Ginny was holding up and immediately felt jealous. It was a long, gold satin. The sleeves were long and shiny. That was about all she could make out because Ginny had ran off to the changing rooms. Five minutes later she emerged. Hermione gasped.  
  
The dress fell down to the floor. The bodice fit snugly to her slim waist and formed a 'V' just below her stomach. The sleeves were as tight as Hermione had thought, but they widened out near her wrists to cover her hands half way. The lover half of the dress was beautiful. It was wide and glittered when she moved. All in all, she was beauty.  
  
"It's gorgeous." said Hermione truthfully.  
  
"It's mine." said Ginny and went back into the changing room to take it off.  
  
Hermione went off to look for something for herself. She was looking for perhaps two minutes when the shopkeeper appeared.  
  
"Hello there, how may I help you?" she asked cheerfully. She was a plump woman with frizzy hair. Her robes were plain black but twinkled when she moved.  
  
"Day. I need to be Day." blurted Hermione without thinking.  
  
The shopkeeper gave her a curious look. You know, that head-cocked-to-one- side-what-are-you-talking-about look. Hermione was sure she must think her mad.  
  
"Hmm…yes…I think I've got the perfect thing for you Dearie. Follow me." she said with a sparkle in her eye.  
  
She led Hermione into the very back of the shop. It was darker their, and so were the clothes; black, navy, dark green. Hermione was just about to tell her that she'd find something on her own when something caught her eye. It was behind a rack of old black robes. The shopkeeper went straight for it, taking the dress down and holding it out to Hermione.  
  
"Try it on before you have a look at it Dearie. It works better that way."  
  
Hermione was led back to the changing rooms. Ginny was just coming out when Hermione went in.  
  
"What you got?" asked Ginny.  
  
"I'm not sure." replied Hermione.  
  
She went into a cubicle and put on the dress. It was a perfect fit.  
  
"Don't look in the mirror yet!" shouted the shopkeeper. "Show us first."  
  
Hermione pulled back the curtain and stood in front of the two other women. The shopkeeper smiled and nodded her head. Ginny, on the other hand looked like a fish out of water. Her eyes were bulged and her mouth kept opening and closing.  
  
"Well?" asked Hermione, "What's it like?"  
  
"It's…it's…" stammered Ginny.  
  
The shopkeeper let out a joyous laugh. "You can look at yourself now."  
  
She took out her wand, gave it a wave and produced a full-length mirror on the wall beside her.  
  
Hermione turned and nearly collapsed.  
  
The dress was a golden yellow, long and flowing down her body. It had a high collar and long sleeves that came to a point at her middle finger. There was a piece of material going from her back down to her sleeves on either arm. When she lifted them, they billowed out, as if blown by a wind. When she moved, the light caught the dress and seemed to… reflect off of it. She positively glowed. The light from the dress highlighted her hair. It was gold one minute, then blonde, light brown, light red.  
  
What caught her attention most of all though, was her eyes. They weren't her usual brown, but a gold so bright that she could see her reflection in them.  
  
She turned to face Ginny and the shopkeeper.  
  
"I'll take it."  
  
  
  
A/N So, that's it, the 6th chapter. Like it? Please review!!  
  
Acknowledgements: Starting with my first reviewer.  
  
*HarryPotterCC1 * Thanks & I did what you said! *Amanda * Thanks, you're great! *Captain Kemp * I never said Draco was going to be a good boy. * Roxy * Thanks *Mighty Me * You'd really review me every night?! Thanx *Ruby Moon and Christine * Poor you! You'll do better next time! Study with Ruby. *Princess Darkness * Laura is a girl from my school. She's really like that! *Draco's Silver Tabby Cat Girl * Oh thank you x 10 *Fe * To the end huh? I've got a dedicated reader Yay!! *Kristina * I'm hurrying! *Tanya * Soz about the confusion! LOL *Jamilyn * That's a lot of wows! *Krum- Luver * I'm not making Hermione into a Britany Spears. She, like most other girls, is discovering her feminine style. Just a little later then most! *Mariella * she is pretty isn't she? *Ricky * The dorm is following the Hogwarts crest. Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. Hope that clears it up for ya! *Jade * Your fave Draco/Hermione fic!? I'm so honoured! *Me4draco * Golden, that's given me an idea! *Shirazuki * I'm writing more as you read this! LOL *Aphrael * Ah…thanks! *Annie * Thanks for the review (at last!!) 


	7. Funny feelings

Disclaimer: same as first chapter.  
  
A/N: OH. MY. GOD.!! Thanks for all of the great reviews, all 105 of them!! Me is soooo happy. Reviews make my day! Love you all!!!  
  
Chapter 7. Funny feelings.  
  
Hermione and Ginny strolled into the Three Broomsticks with smug looks on their faces. They ordered two butterbeers and sat down at a table in the corner of the room. Ginny, not being able to quell her excitement any longer started talking in a breathless manner.  
  
"Oh my God! Your dress is beautiful. It fits you just right and," her voice dropped into a whisper, "Did you see what is did to you? Your hair and your eyes… what it did to them? It must be enchanted or something. I've never heard of a dress that could do that before. You'll be the belle of the ball."  
  
Hermione laughed to herself. Good old Ginny.  
  
"No Ginny, you'll be the Belle of the ball, literally.  
  
"What? Why? My dress is nowhere near as nice as yours. And I'm not nearly as pretty."  
  
Hermione let out a trickle of laughter, not wanting to hurt her feelings.  
  
That's your characters' real name. Belle. It means beautiful. Beauty and the beast is just the name of the story."  
  
"Oh, I didn't realise."said Ginny, bashfully.  
  
Hermione was just about to explain to her that lots of people in the wizarding world may not know about 'Beauty & the Beast', but she was stopped but the entrance of Harry and Ron. They ordered butterbeers and sat down beside Ginny and Hermione.  
  
"Who do you think will win? They're both good teams. Not as good as Gryffindor of course, but good non the less."asked Ron taking a huge gulf of his drink.  
  
"Well, it's hard to say. Ravenclaw have good strategy and speed to go with it…" replied Harry.  
  
Hermione stopped listening. She could understand Einstein's theory of relativity, Merlin's theory of potion polivity and Dumbledore's theory of telling an hour long story in the middle of an announcement, but quidditch, well, quidditch was beyond her.  
  
She supped at her butterbeer and looked around. She couldn't risk talking to Ginny. The girl looked as if she was going to burst with the strain of not mentioning their dresses.  
  
She was daydreaming about the ball when something Harry said caught her attention.  
  
"Sorry Harry, what did you just say?"  
  
"I said," said Harry knowing that quidditch bored Hermione, "I wonder if Malfoy is going to play. You know, with his father missing and all, his concentration might not be good."  
  
Hermione let what Harry was saying float around her mind for a few seconds. She hadn't noticed anything different with Malfoy, nothing at all. He stayed out of her way if she stayed out of hers, there was the odd mudblood/slimy ferret calling, nothing unusual at all.  
  
"I don't see why he wouldn't play. He's the best seeker in the school, second only to you Harry." Hermione added, after getting a dirty look from everyone at the table. "Well," she stammered, "He is. Even I can see that!"  
  
The subject was quickly changed as Snape walked in. He didn't like anyone talking badly about Malfoy.  
  
Hermione expected him to say something nasty to Harry and, when he didn't come near them, she looked up to see why.  
  
Oh, she thought, grinning wildly, that's why.  
  
Snape was to preoccupied with Miss Clarke, to notice Harry Potter. He was positively drooling over her. Miss Clarke was smiling and laughing at everything he said.  
  
"Nice couple huh?" said Ron slyly.  
  
"Yeah," replied Hermione. Hermione looked at Miss Clarke. She was laughing and smiling alright, but she noticed that the smile didn't quite reach her eyes and that her laughter sounded false. But, why would she be pretending to like Snape. In all of the classes I've had with her, she seemed a very genuine person. Still, she couldn't shake off the feeling that she was hiding something.  
  
"Why don't I like her?" asked Ginny in a hushed voice.  
  
"Weird," said Hermione "I was just thinking the same thing.  
  
  
  
A/N Sorry that's so short but I had to get it in. The next chapter is going to be long to make up for it. I promise. And Laura, you're in the next one!!!!  
  
Thanks again for all of the reviews. I really love you guys!!! 


	8. Flying without Wings

A/N Yay, even more reviews! Great!  
  
Chapter 8 Flying without Wings  
  
The day for the quidditch mach was drawing closer and closer. Hermione hadn't seen Malfoy for a few days, well, except for meals and classes.  
  
The Saturday before the match, Hermione got up early, even by her standards. Since it was the weekend, she didn't have to wear her robes.  
  
Thank God, thought Hermione, they're starting to get a little stuffy!  
  
She opened her closet and had a quick look outside before she chose what to wear. It was a mild day, not to hot, not to cold. She took out a pair of dark blue hipster jeans and lighter blue polo neck. She put them on and brushed her hair. She walked into the Gryffindor common room, tying it up in a messy bun.  
  
Nobody was awake yet. Typical.  
  
She left and strolled into the hall. There were a few people up. Not many though. It was a Saturday and we're talking about teenagers here. Up early on a Saturday, hardly!  
  
She sat down and grabbed herself a bowl of corn flakes. Yum, her favourite.  
  
For a half empty hall, it's boiling! She thought. Maybe it was a bad idea to wear the polo neck.  
  
She finished her cereal and went outside. It was much cooler out here. She looked over at the quidditch pitch and noticed someone there. She walked over and sat on one of the middle stands. She watched the person, zooming here and whizzing there.  
  
That looks like fun, she thought wistfully. She hadn't been on a broom since Madame Hooch's flying lessons in first year. She never had a reason to after. She had asked Harry to bring her flying once, but he was to busy with, you got it, quidditch. Hermione was so busy thinking to herself that she didn't realise that the person on the broom was coming towards her.  
  
"Hey, Granger! What are you staring at?" he yelled.  
  
Hermione looked up with a jerk and looked straight into the face of…Malfoy. He was holding something in his hand, the snitch. She this is where he's been these past few days, practising quidditch! Should have guessed, she thought.  
  
"I said, what are you staring at?" repeated Malfoy.  
  
"I was just thinking to myself, you just happened to be in my line of sight when I started daydreaming." She said, not wanting him to know the real reason.  
  
"So," said Malfoy with a sly grin, "It's got nothing to do with the fact that you haven't been on a broom since first year has it?"  
  
"How do you-" Hermione was cut off by Malfoys' laughter.  
  
"It's not that hard to figure out. I have never seen you on a broom since Madame Hootchs' lessons, and you're not allowed to fly outside school."  
  
"Well," she stammered, "Maybe I don't want to go on a broom. They're frightfully dangerous if you think about it. I mean, they go so fast and…what are you doing?!"  
  
Malfoy was pulling Hermione onto the broom. He sat her in front of him and flew up over the pitch.  
  
"Draco Malfoy, put me down right this instant!!!" she yelled, holding onto the broom handle so hard that she thought it would snap.  
  
"Okay," said Malfoy in his trademark drawl, "You said it."  
  
The hands that had previously been wrapped around her waist slithered away. Hermione was left to hold on for herself. She was slipping off the edge. Any minute she was going to fall off. She closed her eyes and began to weep. She hated Malfoy for doing this to her. Hated him!  
  
"Now, I told you you'd pay, didn't I Granger?" he said to her.  
  
"Please Malfoy, don't let me fall." She said through her tears. "I'm sorry for walking into you. Really."  
  
Hermione heard Malfoy draw in a breath. He had been going higher and faster since he first flew off with her. She was getting quite breathless.  
  
She felt herself slipping away; she was passing out. She felt herself fall; heard Malfoy yell her name. She fell for what seemed like an eternity, then, suddenly, she was being held. The wind blew through her hair. The last thing she heard before she passed out was Malfoy.  
  
"I'd never hurt you…The forcica (for-si-ka) spell."  
  
Hermione sunk into the darkness that was calling to her.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Are you sure Mr. Malfoy? The forcica spell involves a lot of time and skill. Only a fair few wizards and witches can make it a powerful as you say it was." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"I'm sure Professor. I didn't want to do it but I did. I knew I was doing it but… it was like I was in a shell and I couldn't break out. I heard myself talking to her, but I wasn't saying it." Replied Malfoy, trying desperately to make him believe what he was being told.  
  
"It's possible Professor," said a new voice. "The forcica spell searches the mind of the person it is going to use. When it has found something it can use, it forces the mind back, taking its' place. It can only do this for about ten minutes. All it is supposed to do is control the person. It did that, to Mr. Malfoy. What has happened to Miss Granger is quite different. She has been put under a comatose spell. It basically puts the person into a coma. She won't gain consciousness again until she is ready or, when she breaks the spell."  
  
"How…how long will that take?" asked Malfoy in a small voice.  
  
"It can take anything from an hour, to…years. I'm sorry I can't do anything more Professor."  
  
Miss Clarke, now Professor Clarke, turned and walked out…but not before Malfoy noticed her…smile.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
It was dark, cold and dark. She couldn't see, hear. She didn't know where she was. She tried to move but couldn't. It was as if thick black ropes were holding her down, tied around her arms, waist, and legs. She tried to scream, but nothing came out. She tried over and over again, screaming as fast as she could draw breath. She fought against the ropes, against the silence.  
  
She stopped suddenly. She could hear something. She strained against her capture, listening with all of her might. She heard…laughter, cold and cruel. It was coming closer and closer and closer. Soon it was on top of her. She tried again to scream, to fight her way out of the binding ropes, but she couldn't. She couldn't breath, couldn't move. She was smothering. She could hear another sound, other than the mad laughter. It was a beating sound. Thump thump, thump thump. It was her heart beating, straining against that witch was holding her down. It was going faster and faster, louder and louder. Then it began to slow down, to become quiet. It stopped.  
  
All was quiet. Then the laughter was back. The evil, insane laugher, going on and on, never stopping…never going away…  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"What's wrong with her!? Why is she screaming? Help her!!" yelled Malfoy. Professor Dumbledore waved his wand in the air. Snapes' face appeared, floating in mid-air.  
  
"Professor, we need you here, NOW!" yelled Dumbledore.  
  
Hermione was still screaming, jerking back and forth. She should have fallen off the bed by now, but it was as if something was holding her, stopping her from moving to much.  
  
Snape appeared beside her. Malfoy didn't care how he got there. He only cared about Hermione.  
  
"Oh no…" said Snape in a small voice.  
  
"What is it Professor?" asked Malfoy, scared by the look on Snapes face.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore, Miss Granger has been cursed. It's," he faltered, "it's the ritzcom curse."  
  
"Oh my," said Dumbledore quietly. "Can you…?"  
  
"It's only been attempted once. They failed." Said Snape, looking down at Hermione. "But I won't." he said defiantly.  
  
"Professor, what's wrong with her. Proff. Clarke said that-"  
  
"Draco, please" interjected Snape. "Miss Granger is slowly getting worse. If I don't cast the counter-curse now, we'll lose her."  
  
Malfoy said no more. He stood back and watched as Snape passed his wand over Hermiones' body. He was mumbling something, over and over. He reached her head and stopped there. He was chanting more strongly now, with more force. He was sweating all over. Malfoy watched Snapes' wand. The tip was glowing white, but what caught his attention was the…dark mist that was being drawn from Hermione into the wand. It was the blackest of black. It looked solid from the corner of his eye, but when he looked at it full on, it was mist again.  
  
Hermione was still screaming…then suddenly, she stopped. She just lay there, not moving at all.  
  
"Dumbledore, spark her…quickly, she's going!" yelled Snape.  
  
Dumbledore pointed his wand at Hermiones' chest and said something under his breath. A beam of white-hot light flew from the wand and into Hermiones' chest. Snape was still drawing the darkness from her. All was quite for a moment, then the screaming began. It was the most evil thing Malfoy had ever heard. It went on and on.  
  
"Expeloros" yelled Snape.  
  
The laughter stopped. The dark mist vanished into the wand. Hermione stopped screaming.  
  
Snape stepped back and took a deep breath.  
  
"It's gone." He said simply.  
  
Malfoy walked over to Hermione. He stopped beside her and reached down to touch her hand. She felt cold, cold as death.  
  
"I don't think it worked" said Malfoy, trying, but failing to hold back his tears. "She's dead."  
  
  
  
A/N Told you this chapter was going to be long, well, long for me anyway! Sorry about the cliff-hanger. Well, not really!! Just wanted to add a little…spice! Please review! Tell me what you think. Thanks to DD for helping me out. She came up with the word forcica. Sorry if they don't sound real. If anyone can think of more good spell word, I'm all ears, or should I say eyes…. 


	9. The Wake-Up Call

Disclaimer: as in first chapter.  
  
A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed! DD, hurry up with chapter 4. Katie, you too!! You may be glad that we got you addicted now, but when you're on it ALL of the time, you'll want to kill us! I'm on chapter 9 peeps!! Arrggh!  
  
Chapter 9 The Wake-Up Call.  
  
The screaming had stopped. Silence returned, wrapping itself around her. She could move now, but she didn't want to. She wasn't moving, wasn't breathing…she wasn't living. She was existing.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Malfoy didn't know why he was crying. He hadn't even liked her. She was a muggle, a mudblood for heaven sake! She was know-it-all-little-miss-perfect- Granger. And she was dead.  
  
Dumbledore walked over to her and placed his wand on her forehead. He mumbled a few words and moved his wand down to her mouth.  
  
"Proff. Snape, please give me a second opinion."  
  
Snape did the same thing to her and looked up at Dumbledore.  
  
"She's alive." He said simply.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
She felt warmth gathering around her. It started in her head and spread down through her body, sending sparks from her fingers. She heard voices…mumbling things that she couldn't understand. They began to annoy her, why wouldn't they go away?  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"The only thing we can do now is keep talking to her." Said Dumbledore to Malfoy and Proff. Snape.  
  
"She's in a very cold and dark place, she won't be able to get out herself. Well, not without reason anyway."  
  
Malfoy threw a puzzled look towards Dumbledore. "What do you mean?"  
  
"What he means is," began Snape.  
  
"That she's in 'The Dark Place.' (A/N Corny I know but I couldn't think of anything else to call it!!) She will be kept their until she wants to get out for one reason or another." Finished Dumbledore.  
  
"Reason? What kind of reason?" asked a still clueless Malfoy.  
  
"No one knows Mr. Malfoy. This curse has only been performed three times by Fr-" Dumbledore seemed to catch himself before he said anymore. "It has only been performed three times, each time, the person didn't have a good enough reason to want to and be able to get out. They stay there forever."  
  
Malfoy was about to ask Dumbledore what name he was going to say when, seeming to sense what Malfoy was thinking, Snape suggested that he go tell Potter and Weasley.  
  
"I think, considering the circumstances and past experience, it would be best if you go, Proff. Snape."  
  
Snape simply nodded and left.  
  
Ten minutes later, two extremely worried looking faces appeared in the doorway. They must have run all the way here to arrive so quickly, thought Malfoy absentmindedly. All of his attention was on Hermione. That was until he suddenly couldn't breath. Ron had his hands wrapped around Malfoys' neck and was proceeding to strangle the life out of him.  
  
"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HER?!" he screamed "I'M GOING TO MURDER YOU, YOU-" Ron could say no more because he was flying through the air. He landed on a seat a few feet away from Hermiones' bed.  
  
"Mr. Weasley! I don't think this is he time or the place for any such actions.!"  
  
Malfoy, who was gathering his breath, looked at Proff. Dumbledore. He had expected him to tell Weasley to get out, or to al least give him detention, but all he did was, literally, to 'kill' him somewhere else. He caught Dumbledores' eye, and what he saw there scared him. He saw intense dislike, not hate, but not being liked by the head teacher was not a good think. At all.  
  
Snape chose that moment to walk in.  
  
"I disarmed them of their wands Professor. Didn't want anything to happen.  
  
Dumbledore stared at Snape for a moment.  
  
"Thank you Professor, but in future, you will not disarm any of the students, that is unless they are in the act of breaking a rule."  
  
Snape began to stutter something along the lines of 'but what if they attacked him? Blamed him?'  
  
Harry walked over to Hermiones' bedside. He looked down at her. Hermione wasn't a small girl, she was quite tall for her age, but lying in the bed, pale, with her brown hair fanned out around the pillow, she looked just like a porcelain doll. Tiny and fragile. Harry loved Hermione. He didn't love her in the same way that Ron did, this was more of a best friend sisterly love. She was the person that everyone went to if they didn't understand their homework. She was Ron's chess partner and secret crush. She was Ginny's shoulder to cry on. She was his best friend.  
  
Harry turned to Malfoy. Dumbledore, Ron and Snape had been in a discussion about whether or not Ron should get his wand back. Harry didn't know how, but Snape had found out about Ron's attack on Malfoy.  
  
The air in the room became thicker, it was suddenly hard to breathe. The trio turned to Malfoy and Harry, sensing that something was going to happen. Harry had no intention of doing anything to Malfoy. Well, not yet anyway.  
  
Malfoy stared at Harry.  
  
Harry stared at Malfoy.  
  
Harry broke the painful silence.  
  
"If Hermione dies," he said half-whispering, "I'll kill you."  
  
Draco was about to come up with a sarcastic comment when his eyes locked with Harry's'. The look in them scared him more than the look he used to get off his father when he had done something wrong. At that moment, Malfoy believed him.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
The warmth started to go away. It was getting colder. She could still hear noises, like voices. She wanted to hear what they were saying, but the more she strained, the further away they seemed to go. She finally gave up.  
  
Why am I here. It's so cold. Why can't I get out. What's happened.  
  
These questions rolled around her mind for a while. She couldn't answer them.  
  
She let herself drift. She let herself go.  
  
As she did this, the voices became clearer. What she heard scared her.  
  
She's dead  
  
The Dark Place  
  
Stay there forever  
  
I'm going to kill you  
  
I disarmed them  
  
If Hermione dies, I'll kill you  
  
These voices came from all areas of the black silence that she was in. She was dying. She didn't want to die. Who was going to kill whom? Who tried to kill her?  
  
The voices died down, but she could still hear them, they were still flying around inside of her head.  
  
She's dead  
  
I'm not! I'm alive!  
  
The Dark Place.  
  
It's so cold…so quiet.  
  
Stay there forever  
  
I want to get out!  
  
I'm going to kill you  
  
Kill who?!  
  
I disarmed them.  
  
Disarmed who? What's going on?  
  
Stay there forever  
  
I want to get out. Get me out.  
  
If Hermione dies, I'll kill you.  
  
I don't want to die. Help me!  
  
Stay there forever  
  
No!!  
  
Stay there forever  
  
Let me out!!  
  
Stay there forever  
  
LET ME OUT!!  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"LET ME OUT!!"  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Everyone turned to look at Hermione. She had been twisting and turning about for the past few minutes. Dumbledore has called for Madame Pompfy to find something to calm her down.  
  
She was sitting bolt upright, staring at…nothing. Harry and Ron moved closer. Malfoy was already as close as he could get.  
  
"Hermione…Hermione…are you ok?" asked a pale faced Ron.  
  
She seemed to come out of her trance for a few moments. She looked at all of the faces gathered around her.  
  
"Help me." She whispered, and fell back down onto the bed. She began to shudder, lightly at first, then harder and harder until the bed was shaking with her.  
  
"Somebody do something!!" screamed Ron, tears flowing down his face freely.  
  
"There is nothing we can do Mr. Weasley. We can only hope-" Dumbledore was cut off.  
  
"Forcica expelorous fresin aris!!" a new voice boomed.  
  
Malfoy turned to the doorway where the voice had come from. Miss Clarke was standing there with her wand out.  
  
A gasp from Harry brought his attention back to Hermione. She was awake. She looked up at them with her chocolate brown eyes.  
  
"I'm cold."  
  
A/N soz about the weird ending. Gotta go…schools over!!! 


	10. Sick In The Head

A/N: After a few years, I'm finally going to finish this story. Sorry to all that actually enjoyed it. Cringe

Chapter 10Late Night Visit

Hermione looked at the pale faces staring down at her. Harry and Ron were open-mouthed with shock. Dumbledore breathed a sigh of relief while Snape simply sneered at her. What's going on, she thought. Turning her head, she almost jumped in surprise when she saw Malfoy gazing at her in silent awe. This is far too strange, she thought to herself.

"Are you OK?" blurted Ron and Harry simultaneously.

Hermione blinked and thought about the simple question being asked. Was she ok? She didn't know really. She knew she was in the hospital wing because Madame Pomfrey was flittering about, running her wand up and down her body. How she got there, that was a mystery to her. All she could remember was laughter and cold. A cold so intense she immediately started shivering at the memory of it.

"What happened to me?" she managed after a number of failed attempts to talk.

"It seems, Miss Granger," began Dumbledore slowly, "that you were cursed."

Hermione let the news sink in. She had been cursed. But why? And by whom? Her gaze drifted to Malfoy.

"It was you!" she shrieked, memories flooding back to her. "You pulled me onto your broom and then let me fall off! You said 'I told you I'd get you.' And you did! You, you nasty little...trout!"

Harry turned to Malfoy.

"Get out." He said coldly.

"I didn't curse her you numbdug! I was under the forcia spell, someone cursed us both."

"I said, GET OUT!" Harry yelled.

Snape stood in front of Malfoy and peered down at Harry.

"Draco did not do this", he sneered. "Although he is already turning into one of the most talented wizards ever to come to Hogwarts, these two spells could only be preformed by an extremely powerful witch or wizard. An adult wizard. Also, it is an extremely difficult curse to cure "

He turned slowly to the bed behind him.

"Which brings me to the question," he paused dramatically. "How were you able to counter the curse so easily?"

Hermione strained her neck to see who Snape was addressing. Miss Clarke was sitting on the bed opposite her. She stood slowly and began to walk out of the room. She paused for a moment and turned to Proff. Dumbledore.

"Can I speak with you in your office please?" she asked quietly.

She had a far away look in her eyes as she turned back and walked out of the room. Dumbledore stared after her for a moment then followed. Snape began following him.

"Proff. Snape, would you be so kind as to brew Miss Granger a slante potion immediately. Make it extra strong please."

Snape glared after Dumbledore for a moment but obeyed.

"Ah Mr. Malfoy? I think it would be in your best interest to return to you dorm."

Malfoy slunk moodily back to the Prefects dorm. He racked his brains trying to remember exactly what had happened when he was on the pitch. He had been flying around, practicing his new move when something had caught his eye. Or to be more precise, someone. That someone was Hermione Granger. He was thinking of ways to get her back for bumping into him when he felt like his brains were being tickled by a very tiny feather. When the tickling had finally stopped, Hermione had been in the middle of falling off of his broom. It all mad no sense to him. He knew he had been acting strangely since his father had left, but to have a mudblood on his broom? And not just any mudblood…Granger! He could still feel her body in his arms as he caught her, seconds before she would have crashed to the ground. The thought of her that close to him warmed him.

"I must be losing my mind" he said out loud. "I should have let her die!"

Even as he said it, he knew it would have been impossible. His mind became clouded when he thought of her, like he had cotton wool between his ears.

Maybe I'm sick, he thought. Yeah, that's it…I'm sick. Sick in the head.

"Spirit" he said, standing outside the portrait to the Prefects dorm.

"Looks like you've lost yours mate." Said the Ravenclaw Prefect.

Draco ignored him and walked into the mini 'common room'. It was empty, thankfully. He sat down on his overstuffed black chair and sighed. He let his thoughts wonder for a few minutes but all he could think about was Hermione.

"Yup, I'm sick in the head."

A/N: Was going to write more but my mammy's making me tea. ummm, tea


	11. A Late Night Visit

Chapter 11

A Late Night Visit

Hermione lay drifting in and out of sleep in the hospital wing. The slante potion that Proff. Snape had forced her to ingest had tasted like bat guts and sprouts. Not that she knew what bat guts tasted like. It just tasted nasty. It did, however, make her feel a lot better. Madame Pomfrey had told her it was an old Irish potion used to promote good health. Madame Pomfrey had also told her that it contained a large amount of fire whiskey. Thank God for the Irish, she thought dreamily.

As she began to fall asleep, she heard a noise. It was very soft, so soft that she thought she was imagining it a first. Gradually it got louder. And louder. She could make out the sound now: it was laugher, a deep, booming laughter. She couldn't tell where it was coming from; it seemed to seep out of the very fiber of the objects around her. Hermione pulled the blanket up around her head. She wished she could transfigure herself into an ostrich. She could bury her head deep in the sand and hide from the world, or at the very least, hide from the laughter. Unfortunately, she couldn't and the laughter just got worse and worse. It began to fill up her head so that she could think of nothing else. A trickle of laughter escaped her lips. The trickle turned into a stream. Soon, she was drowned in her own laughter.

A/N: I tried to put a little star here but if it doesn't come up…this is a new part of the chap.

Malfoy had decided to give up trying not to think about Hermione. He just went with it. He had eaten his dinner alone and was now resting on his bed. His mind was consumed with Hermione.

"Granger" he corrected himself.

He could not start thinking of her as if she were a real person. That would just confuse things. Right now, he needed his head clear. There were more important things going on in his life than what was happening with Hermione. He just couldn't seem to keep his mind on them. He had to get her out of his head. There was only one way to do that.

A/N: another break

Malfoy crept out of his room as soon as it was late enough that bumping into anyone was unlikely. Even if he did, he could just say he was on prefect business.

He heard the laugher as soon as he stepped foot inside the hospital wing. It gave him shivers all down his spine. Malfoy, being who he was, had met some very nasty and downright evil people in his years. They had all some sort of quirk that had creeped him out, but this laughter…it topped them all. It echoed about around him, never coming from the same place.

He opened the door to the hospital wing to find Madame Pomfrey and Proff. Dumbledore bent over Hermione's bed. As he went closer, he could see that she was huddled up on her bed, echoing the laughter that was pouring out of the walls. Tears were flowing down her cheeks.

"What's happening to her?" he yelled over the din.

Madame Pomfrey turned around and started ushering him out.

"What are you doing her? You should be in bed! I'll be telling Proff. Snape about this! He'll be so…" she began but was cut off by Dumbledore.

"Madame Pomfrey, Bring Mr. Malfoy over here would you?"

Malfoy tried to mask his shock but he knew Dumbledore never missed a trick.

"Mr. Malfoy," Dumbledore began, "I believe you can help Miss Granger."

This time Malfoy didn't even try to hide his surprise.

"Me?" he asked incredulously, "How could I help her? She's lost it!"

Malfoy looked down at her and realized that even though he knew he couldn't help her, he wished he could. That scared him even more than the crazy laughter.

Hermione's shivering got worse and her hand fell to the side of the bed. Malfoy instinctively reached for it, but drew his hand back when he realised what he was doing.

Dumbledore cam up beside him.

"Do not be afraid Mr. Malfoy" he whispered.

Malfoy slowly reached out for Hermione's hand. He paused just a hairs breath away from it.

"How is this going to help?" he asked, still holding his hand away.

"I do not know if it will. But we can try."

Malfoy took her hand. Her laughing stopped. Her shivering decreased.

The laughter seeping out of the room increased until it began to fill Malfoy's head, just as it had Hermione's. Just as it was about to take over, Hermione opened her eyes. She looked at Malfoy, then down at his hand intertwined with her own. She blinked then looked back up at him.

"Thank you." She breathed.

The laughter stopped abruptly.

Malfoy's head became clear. He stared down at her and felt the beginning of actual butterflies in his stomach. It was all too much for him. He snatched his hand away and wiped it on his hand on his sleeve, as if he'd touched something dirty.

"Thank you? Thank you for what?" he asked scathingly. "I'm the one that put you in here in the first place remember!" He gave his hand one last wipe on his sleeve and walked out o the room.


	12. I'd Do Nothing For You

Chapter 12

I'd Do Nothing For You

Draco spent the next couple of days in a kind of trance. He went to his classes, he ate his meals, he did his homework, and he slept. He did not, however, let his mind drift onto the subject of Granger. Thinking about her made him feel…strange. He found out from Proff Dumbledore that Hermione would be back in classes that day. She was still a little shook from her experience but she wanted to catch up on the school work she had missed.

Typical Miss Know It All, thought Draco. She could probably miss a month of school and still be at the top of the class in all subjects.

-0-

Hermione lay soaking in her bathtub. The sent of lavender filled the room. She had been cooped up in the hospital wing for far too long. She had finally convinced Proff Dumbledore that she was ok and that her pale complexion was a result of being deprived of the sun for days on end.

She finally dragged herself out of the tepid water and began to get ready for class. She had been excused from all morning classes so that she could have a bit of time to herself and to fix herself up a bit. As she looked at her reflection in the mirror, she could see why both Proff Dumbledore and Madame Pomfrey had been reluctant to let her leave. She was extremely pale. So pale in fact, that her freckles also had a washed out look to them. Her chocolate brown eyes looked almost black set against the white of her skin. She dried her hair and put on her school robes. She considered putting on a bit of make-up to make her look a bit more alive but the lunch bell rang. She hadn't eaten that morning and wanted to get lunch in the great hall. She put her hair up in a loose bun and headed down to lunch.

-0-

Malfoy was in the middle of stuffing his face with a chicken pie when he felt the urge to look up. Hermione was walking through the great hall towards Potter and Weasly. He glanced around and noticed that he was not the only person looking at Hermione. A lot of the older boys were looking at her too, not to mention a number of his fellow housemates! As she was sitting down, she glanced over at his table, eyes searching. When they found him they stopped for a second. She blinked, and then turned away. Malfoy found himself wishing that she had continued looking at him. He shook his head, trying to get some sense into it. She's a filthy mudblood, he chastised himself, why would I want it to stare at me? With that thought still in his head, he continued to eat his pie.

-0-

Hermione walked into the great hall and immediately felt eyes on her. Word spread pretty quickly at Hogwarts, especially if it concerned someone close to Harry. She ignored the stares and went to sit with Harry and Ron. As she was sitting, she chanced a quick look over to Malfoy's table. She didn't have to search for long. His white blond hair stood out against the black of his robes. She didn't dare look for too long, but she caught his eyes nonetheless. His gazed met hers unflinchingly. She blinked and turned away.

"How are you feeling?" asked Ron. He had been to see her in the hospital wing every day that she had been in there, along with Harry and Ginny. Every day he asked the same question and every day the answer had been the same.

"I'm fine Ron, really I am. Now can we please forget about the whole thing? I don't want to think about it anymore."

Harry and Ron had been warned by Ginny not to push Hermione into telling them exactly what had happened to her when she was in 'The Dark Place'.

"She'll tell us when she's ready. If you keep at her, she'll just wall up." Ginny had said.

Harry and Ron looked at each other and shrugged. Ginny was a girl, just like Hermione. She probably knew best.

-0-

Hermione had to endure stares and not so whispered comments for the rest of the day. During potions, Parkinson had begun to laugh quietly. When she noticed that Proff Snape was in effect ignoring her, she began to laugh louder, then louder. Harry and Ron had been just about to flare up when the most unexpected thing happened.

"10 points from Slythrin"

Hermione looked up at Snape. His mouth was agape. Well, if he hadn't taken the points then…

She turned and looked at Malfoy. Pansy was also open-mouthed.

"Draco? What do you mean 10 points off Slythrin? Don't you mean Gryffindor?" she asked incredulously.

Malfoy lifted his head and turned to Pansy.

"Are you implying that I am stupid? Are you implying that I made a stupid mistake? He asked her quietly.

Both Gryffindors and Slytherins waited for her answer.

"N-no,' she stumbled.

Malfoy turned away from her and looked up ant Snape expectantly. The class resumed.

-0-

That night, Hermione went straight to her room. She didn't even stop to say hello to Laura and Sean. After the day she'd had, she just wanted to be alone. She lay down on her bed and sighed. What a strange potions class. Just when she thought she was going to blow and kill Pansy Parkinson, or even worse, run out of the dungeon crying, Malfoy had stepped in and saved her. Saved her for the third time. She lay on her bed thinking about the last couple of weeks. When she woke up again, it was very late. She changed into he PJs and tried to go back to sleep. After about an hour, she gave up and went into the common room. Thinking she'd be alone, she got a fright when she saw Malfoy sitting in his chair, gazing into a burning fire.

Great, he didn't see me, she thought, turning to go back to her room.

"Spying on me Granger?" came a voice from the chair. "That's bad manners, even for a mudblood."

Hermione turned back to him, fully intending to rip him to shreds, but the look on his face stopped her. He looked sad and tired. She suddenly remembered that his father was missing. Now Lucius Malfoy was nobody's favourite person, except, she thought, maybe to his son.

She pulled her own chair up next to the fire and sat down beside him.

"Thank you for catching me when I fell off your broom," she began. "Proff Dumbledore explained to me that we were both put under a spell and that it wasn't you fault."

Malfoy remained quite while she spoke. In all honesty, he didn't know what to say to her. Just being this close to her made his brain go all mushy. He began to notice that she was talking much quieter than when she had begun. He had to lean in closer to her to hear her.

"I don't know what happened to me in the hospital wing. This…crazy laughter started coming out of the walls and is filled my head so that I couldn't hear anything else and…" he voice caught in her throat. Malfoy looked up at her and noticed a single tear trailing down her pale cheek. He hadn't noticed how pale she was until he could look at her properly in potions class. She looked fragile, delicate. Like a porcelain doll.

"It's ok," he began tentatively, "whatever it was, it's gone now. You're safe."

-0-

Hermione gazed up at Malfoy and couldn't quite believe it. She had always felt safe at Hogwarts. Even in first year when she had been cornered by the mountain troll, and in third year when they thought Sirius was a mad man after Harry. Now though, she wasn't so sure.

-0-

Malfoy stared down into the almost black eyes looking up at him. The butterflies had returned. He didn't know what to do. This was Granger, the filthy mudblood that had caused him so much trouble. He hated her, and all of her kind. As he gazed down at her however, he began to think that hate was too strong a word. Maybe really, really disliked.

-0-

Hermione began to feel dizzy. She had been silent for too long. She stood up abruptly. Malfoy followed. Standing up, they were even more closely together. Neither one of them said anything. Malfoy moved closer to Hermione, so close that she could feel the line of heat that his body generated between them.

-0-

And thank you for today," she said breathlessly. "You really didn't have to do that for me…"

She was broken off by Malfoy's lips meeting hers. It was a gentle kiss, innocent almost. It sent shivers down to her toes. She knew what they were doing was wrong, but she couldn't seem to push him away. It felt right somehow. She felt safe.Malfoy drew her into him, deepening the kiss. He knew what he was doing was crazy but he felt happier than he had in a very long time. The way her body moulded perfectly into his; it was like something from a fairy tale. Her hands ran up his chest, resting on his shoulders. Her touch was feather light but it still managed to make his head spin. He was losing his mind…

-0-

Malfoy pulled back abruptly.

"Losing my mind" he said quietly.

Hermione didn't know what he was talking about, or what to say to him.

Malfoy looked down into her chocolate brown eyes and pushed her roughly away from him.

"I'm sick in the head! Losing my mind!" he ranted. "What have you done to me?"

"Nothing!" yelled Hermione, "I was thanking you for saving me when you…"

Two doors opened. A sleepy looking Sean and a very messy Laura stared out at them.

"Whasgoinon?" Sean yawned.

"I…we…" stammered Hermione.

"We were doing nothing," interjected Malfoy. "Hermione decided that it was a good time to thank me for something that I didn't do."

He turned and glared at Hermione.

"I did nothing for you especially not today. Pansy was giving me a headache with her stupid laughing. Nothing more."

He started making his way to his room when he stopped and turned back to Hermione.

"I'd do nothing for you." He growled.

A/N: Reviews are good people; they let me know what you're thinking. I'm not sure if I want this story to have a happy ending or a realistic ending. Your thoughts are welcome :o)


	13. Five Minutes!

Chapter 13

Five Minutes!

Hermione lay on her bed wondering what had just happened. Well, she knew what had happened; she and Draco had kissed. Yet, she didn't know what _happened _happened.

He's just getting me back for bumping into him…still, she thought, rolling onto her side. What a HORRID man.

Boy, she corrected herself. A man wouldn't have reacted the way Draco had.

She sat up and turned to her Hi-Fi. She had spent a lot of her summer listening to some muggle bands. They were obviously nowhere near as good as Wizard/Witch bands but they were ok. Her Mum and Dad thought it was great. They loved the fact that she was a witch once they got used to the idea, but she knew they got frustrated when they talked to their friends about what their respective children were doing in school, what subjects they loved and what they wanted to be when they grew up. By listening to muggle music, Hermione gave her parents something to talk to other parents about.

Hermiones' Mum: "She had Lacuna Coil blasting last night; I don't know how she listens to that music!"

Other Mum: "I know, my Jacks the same! Always watching that awful MTv."

She looked through her CDs (yet another wonderful muggle invention) and put one into the player. Litmusvinyl came soothingly out of the speakers.

She lay back down on her bed and closed her eyes.

Memories of her shared kiss with Draco flooded her mind.

Why did her do it? He was the one that initiated it…wasn't he? I should have pushed him away. WHY didn't I push him away?

The only conclusion she could come to was that she was weak after her stay in the hospital wing and her mind was tired from it all.

The rotten little snot took advantage of me she thought, finally drifting off to sleep.

She awoke late the next morning barely having time to shower before breakfast. She didn't see hide nor hair of Draco. Thank God, she thought, going down to breakfast. She didn't know how to act around him after last night. She was going to try and ignore him and hope he did the same.

Sighing, she sat down next to Harry.

"Morning Herm," said Harry, giving a sideways look at Ron. "How'd you sleep?"

"Here, have some toast." said Ron around a mouth full of porridge.

Hermione took the offered toast and began to nibble at it.

"Great," she said, hiding a yawn.

Harry gave Ron another of his sideways looks.

Ron swallowed his porridge and opened his mouth to speak.

"If you're going to ask me how I am, say I don't look like I've slept or talk about me in general…shut it." Hermione said before he could begin.

Ron, obligingly, shut his mouth.

Hermione reached for the orange juice, glancing around the hall. Her eyes fell on Draco. He was sitting, as usual, in-between Crabbe and Goyle. What was not usual was the fact that he looked like he hadn't gotten a wink of sleep either. His usual pale face looked even paler and he had dark rings under his eyes. He looked up and caught her staring. He reached out for his glass, lifted it in a salute and turned away.

Hermione didn't know what to make of it so she just poured her orange juice and continued eating her toast.

All of Hermiones' morning classes passed without incident. Unless of course you would class Neville sprouting feathers in transfiguration, (he was supposed to change a pencil into a worm. Feathers? Go figure.) Seamus getting detention for tangling his wand in an unfortunate first years hair and then said first year giving him a black eye. It almost made her smile…except for the fact that Gryffindor lost 20 points and she was the one that had to take them. She was in two minds whether to take 20 points off the first year aswell or let her go with a warning. She had compromised and taken 10 points. The poor girls' hair was punishment enough and Seamus' black eye might make him calm down a bit for a week or so. Maybe. Nah.

Hermione was still pondering this when she walked into Potions class. She had let Harry and Ron go ahead of her incase she was late. She had an excuse…they didn't. She was beginning to wish she'd eaten more at lunch. Her stomach was growling and dinner was still a couple of hours away.

She opened the door to the potions class and was greeted with a room in chaos. Cauldrons were belching obnoxious green and black smoke; one was even spewing a rancid yellow gunk all over Neville. Poor Neville. She looked up to the top of the class and found Snape glaring down at her.

"Miss Granger," he drawled "I know that you are the apple of every teacher's eye, and could probably get away with being late for their classes, but I will not tolerate it."

Hermione was taken aback. She was only a couple of minutes late at the most.

"Professor," she began.

"Don't _Professor _me Granger!" Snape literally spat. "This is unacceptable!"

"But…I'm only five minutes late! I had Prefect work and I couldn't help it!"

Snape blinked slowly and grinned.

"Five minutes? Five minutes Granger?" he said incredulously. "I understand that a female's sense of timing is very different to the rest of the worlds but this is ridiculous."

Hermione stared blankly at him. It was only five minutes. She stopped to take points off Seamus and the first year, told Harry and Ron to go on without her, gave directions to a different first year and then…she…she came here.

Snapes' grin began to fade. He strode down the dungeon towards her.

"Miss Granger," he said stopping before her. "You have missed and entire double class."

As if to prove his point, the bell rang to signal the end of the day.

Hermione looked around her. Nobody moved. Everyone was too interested in what was going on. She glanced at Ron and Harry. They had identical worried looks on their faces.

"Wha…what's going on?" she stuttered. "I'm only five minutes late. I…I should only be five minutes late."

"What was the last thing you did Granger? Where were you?" Snapes' questions continued to fly at her and the class continued to stare. A few of the Slytherin girls were snickering and making stupid faces at her. The room began to swim. She could feel her legs begin to tremble.

Hermiones' mind reeled. She tried to remember getting to where she was…but her head began to pound. She remembered her head feeing weird on the way over...like she had cotton wool between her ears.

"I don't know." She breathed, passing out. The last thing she remembered was Harry and Ron rushing forward to catch her.

Draco looked down at the unconscious mudblood in his arms. He had no idea what had possessed him to stop her from cracking her know-it-all head on the stone floor but just like when she had fell off of his broom, he found himself unable to resist helping her.

He looked closer and saw that her eyelashes made a perfect fan against her pale cheek, her soft, silky, yet still mildly bushy hair spilled lazily over his arm.

With a rush of energy he swept her up into his arms and promptly nearly dropped her onto her know-it-all head as someone crashed into him.

"What the bloody hell do you think you're doing!" shouted Ron reaching for Hermione.

Before he could reply Snape stepped in.

"Mr. Malfoy, could you please bring Miss. Granger to my office. Although undesirable, it is the closest."

"Give her over Malfoy!" spat Harry through his teeth. "She wouldn't want you filthy hands on her. You probably did this to her aswell."

Dracos' jaw clenched.

"I didn't do anything to her. She just passed out. It was probably from seeing what a mess you made of a simple voice changing potion!"

Harry made a move to grab Hermione. Draco growled low in his throat.

"Just try it Potter." He said in a low voice that sounded nothing like his own.

Confusion flashed in Harry's eyes.

"Mr. Malfoy, I haven't got all day." Snape said through his nose.

Draco turned on his heal and headed off to Snapes' office. He was shocked. Why had he acted so protectively of Granger? She was a mudblood after all, not to mention Potter's friend! Just thinking about it made him what to drop the light wisp of a girl in his arms right where he stood…but again, he couldn't.

"What's going on?" he muttered under his breath.

Hermione woke up to the sound of voices.

Not again, she thought.

She opened her eyes slowly and was greeted by a pair of keen blue eyes looking down at her. Focusing, she realised that the eyes belonged to Draco Malfoy. Turning to look away, she also realised that she was cradled in his arms.

"What's going on" she asked in a small voice.

Malfoy blinked. What's going on? How in Merlin's name do I know!

"What? Miss Know-it-all doesn't know what going on?" he said scathingly. "You passed out, again. Not only did you pass out" he said, eyes narrowing, "I have to carry you to Snapes' office."

Hermione immediately began to wriggle in his arms.

"Would you stop that?" Malfoy said, easily containing her. "I'll put you down as soon as I get there. I'm not getting the blame if you pass out again and crack your skull."

Hermione slowly stilled in his arms. She didn't want to admit it but she was enjoying being held in his arms. His arms were firm without being bulky. She stifled a shudder at the memory of those strong arms wrapped around her.

What was she doing enjoying being held be Draco worm for brains? The thought of him being so close to her should be repulsive, yet she felt herself relax into his arms and lean into him more. His scent invades her senses.

He smells good, she though.

They reached the door to Snapes office and Malfoy reached out to open it. Hermione slipped forward and knocked her elbow against the hard wood.

"Sorry." Malfoy muttered.

He strode into the office and looked around. It was sparsely furnished. A desk, a chair behind the desk, a bookcase full to bursting point with books that had titles such as 'Potions in a Pinch' and 'Advanced Potions for the Advanced Practitioner', and shelves that were full of things Hermione didn't even want to know about.

Malfoy sat her down in the only chair and took the desk for himself, sitting directly in front of her. Hermione tucked her legs in under her, cold now that she didn't have Malfoys body to warm her. She glanced up to find him staring at her again.

"What?' she asked proudly. She just _knew _he was going to make some snide remark about her passing out again, or about her being a heavy cow. Steeling herself, she glared at him, awaiting his ridicule.

"Maybe you should have eaten more at lunch. Girls are always passing out because they're starving themselves." He said in a matter of fact tone.

Hermione couldn't have been more surprised if he had confessed his undying love to her.

"I…I had a salad." She mumbled.

"Like I said, maybe you should have eaten more." He replied.

Hermione nodded. What else could she do?

Draco shook his head in irritation. What am I doing, he though to himself. What do I care if she eats or not? Filthy mudblood!

He noticed Hermione was holding her right knee. He poked at it with his foot. She yelped and slapped his foot away.

"What happened?" he asked, looking around.

Hermione carefully set her feet back on the floor.

"I think I hit it when I fell." She said, giving his foot a wary look.

"No you didn't, I caught you before you had a chance to hurt yourself. Stupid mudblood." He added.

Hermione winced as she carefully raised her skirt to see the offending knee.

Malfoy also looked. It was, in fact, bloody and bruised. It almost looked as if she had scraped it somehow.

"Well I can assure you, that didn't happen when you passed out." He said, going to his knees to inspect the wound. It wasn't too deep, just a few gashes and scraped skin. A bruise was already staring to form.

He took a tissue out of his pocket and held it to the cuts.

Hermione wiggled. Malfoy glared up at her.

"Don't worry, it's clean." He said.

Hermione blushed. She hadn't moved because it hurt, she had moved because the feel of his hands on her leg made her feel funny. She squirmed again and held her breath as he moved one of his hands to her left knee.

Draco heard her inhale, and then hold her breath. It couldn't hurt that much he thought. Looking up at her, he was caught off-guard at the look on her face. She was pale, yet her neck was flushed. Kind of cute really, he mused. He followed the gentle heat of her neck to her mouth, plumper and redder than he had ever noticed…or bothered to notice. His gazed moved effortlessly over the rest of her face and came to a lazy halt on her eyes.

He remembered their colour from the night before, a delicious chocolate brown. Memories flooded back to him and he felt his own face flare with heat. He looked down at his hands and found that they had moved onto Hermiones thighs. The feel of her school skirt was rough under his palms, especially in contrast to her soft knees. He dared a fleeting glance up at Hermione and found her wide-eyed. Embarrassed, he moved to take his hands back.

Hermione didn't know what had gotten into her when she reached out and held Malfoy's hands in place. She knew it was wrong, and sick and a betrayal of Harry and Ron; she just couldn't seem to stop herself.

She reached out and made him look at her. His eyes were frightened and confused, but his hands were steady. Each breath they took seemed to bring them closer to each other. Hermiones heart was pounding so loudly she could hear it in her ears, feel her pulse beating wildly in her throat, like a caged bird trying to escape. Their lips were a hairs width apart. She could feel his breath mixing with hers. Closing her eyes, she braced herself for the rush that Malfoys' kiss brought her.

"Forgive me for intruding, but I was under the impression that Miss Granger was ill." Said Dumbledore from the doorway, eyebrows raised.

"It seems however," he grinned, "that I was mistaken."


	14. I Hate You

I Hate You

It was two days after the incident in Snapes office and Hermione still went as red as a tomato if she dared to think about it. Not that she thought about it on purpose of course…her mind just seemed to wander without permission from her as to where is was not allowed to go.

Proff. Dumbledore had made light of the situation but she had noticed that he seemed to be worried. Of course he's worried, she thought. Malfoy had his hands on my legs. Who knows what he might have done if the Headmaster hadn't interrupted! Hermione's mind proceeded to imagine exactly what she thought Malfoy would have done if he wasn't interrupted.

"Hermione, are you OK?" asked a questioning Ron. He had never seen Hermione go from deathly pale to ghastly red so speedily and so often.

Hermione went even redder under the confused stares of Ron, Harry AND Ginny.

"Yes. I'm fine thank you very much for noticing and making it worse…Ron".

Ron looked at Harry who in turn looked at Ron. Both boys then began to eat their dinners.

Ginny turned to Hermione.

"Can I talk to you late? In private I mean."

"Sure." Said Hermione, cringing inwardly. She knew exactly what Ginny wanted to talk to her _in private _about. Being a fellow female, Ginny would have a fair idea why Hermione was perpetually blushing. Hermione would just have to make something up so the younger girl would leave her alone and not pester her about it…

-0-

"David Green??" squealed Ginny. "Oh that's just _perfect!_"

Hermione sat staring open-mouthed at the girl in front of her. She had picked one of the most unobtainable students in the school to 'have a crush on' and Ginny seemed to be on really close terms with his sister…who happened to be in her year! Just typical, thought Hermione. Ginny would obviously now try to….

"…SET YOU UP WITH HIM!"

Hermione groaned.

"It's just the thing to get your mind off how rotten this year has been for you so far, especially what happened a couple of days ago! Can you still not remember where you were for so long or what you were doing?" asked Ginny softly. She knew thinking about it upset her friend.

"I still can't remember. Proff Snape and Proff. Dumbledore tried to figure it out but they said it was as if someone had stolen my memory of what had happened. I told them that it couldn't be possible but they didn't look shocked. I don't know what's happening to me Ginny. It's really staring to scare me."

Ginny reached out and hugged Hermione.

"Don't worry; I have the perfect thing to take your mind off everything…at least for a while!"

Hermione saw the same mischievous sparkle in Ginny's eyes as she had seen so often in her older brothers. Great.

-0-

Hermione didn't have to wait long to find out what Ginny had in mind. The next day at lunch, David 'accidentally' bumped into her as she made her way to the table.

"I'm terribly sorry about that." He said grinning. "Would you care to join me for lunch by way of apology?"

Hermione took a breath to tell him he might as well stop acting when she saw Malfoy staring at her. He didn't so much stare as _glare _at David. This might get him off my case, she though.

"Sure, I'd love to"

-0-

Hermione didn't expect to but she found that she really enjoyed David's company or Greeny as he liked to be called. He was funny, charming, extremely bright and most importantly he seemed to like her. They had shared a couple of lunches, dinners and nearly every study session together in the past week. It was during dinner one evening when he asked if she'd be going to the upcoming Quidditch match between Ravenclaw and Slytherin.

"Actually no, I only ever go when Gryffindor are playing." She said biting into an apple.

"Oh." said Greeny looking decidedly deflated.

It was then that Hermione remembered Ginny telling her that he was a beater for the Ravenclaw team.

"I suppose I should go to this match aswell though…seeing as that you're on the team." Hermione said quickly, going red…again.

A slow smile spread across her face as she saw him fight not to show how happy he was.

"Umm…thanks." He stammered going just as red. "I mean, you don't have to if you don't want to…or if you have too much study or…I don't know, whatever you girls do for hours at the weekend…" He trailed off as Hermione began to laugh, great big belly laughter.

"I don't spend hours on girlie stuff!" she said whilst trying to catch her breath. "I spend hours writing essays. It's a lot more interesting I assure you."

Hermione slowly stopped laughing as she felt someone staring at her from across the hall. Malfoy was openly staring at herself and Greeny and it wasn't a friendly stare.

I doubt he's capable of a friendly anything, thought Hermione.

She heard Greeny saying her name and then a slight pressure on her knee. She turned to see Greeny smiling at her bashfully. Smiling back covered his hand with hers.

Suddenly there was a shadow standing over them. Hermione looked up to see Malfoy looming over Greeny. He had a crazy look in his eyes, like he had a high fever.

"Get your hand off her. Now." He said quietly.

Greeny stood up, towering a good six inches above Malfoy.

"Get lost Malfoy. Your two girlfriends are looking lonely without you." He said looking over at Crabbe and Goyle.

"Don't touch her again." said Malfoy in that same quiet tone.

By now, most of the people around them had stopped eating to watch what was going on.

Greeny took a step closer to Malfoy. It was only then that Hermione realise how big he was. He was muscled without being bulky and had the same hidden strength that all small beaters seemed to posses. But it doesn't matter how big he is, Hermione said to her self. It's who's quicker with a wand.

Hermione had her wand aimed at Malfoy before he could fully raise his. As she was still sitting down, only a few people could see what she was doing.

"Malfoy, I don't know what your problem is but I think it would be a good idea for you to put you wand away. Now"

Malfoys hand convulsed around his wand. His arm started to shake as he closed his eyes. Hermione kept her wand trained on him as he seemed to wage an internal war. Finally, he opened his eyes. The crazy gleam had disappeared from his eyes and he had stopped shaking. Abruptly, he turned and staled out of the Great Hall.

Greeny sat back down beside Hermione.

"What was that about??"

"I don't know," replied Hermione, staring after the retreating figure.

-0-

Draco turned the shower onto full power and let it beat into his tense shoulders. He played over in his mind what had just happened.

He had been eating dinner. He saw Herm- Granger with that Green fellow again. They had been laughing when she looked over at him. That look had paralysed Draco. He didn't know how or why but when she looked at him he felt like sitting up straighter or making sure that he didn't have food all down his face. As if, he thought. Then he saw that Green slime ball put his hand on her knee. Then _she _put her hand over _his. _That had made him remember what had happened in Snapes office. His hand on her knee, the soft feel of her skin…her gently covering his hand with hers. The next thing he knew he was over beside them trying his best now to kill the slime-ball. Something inside of him was urging him on…telling him to get rid of Green, that he was a…complication? Another part of him was freaking out that he even cared! It was _GRANGER _for Merlin's sake! Stupid know-it-all-bushy-haired-Weasel-loving…

I wonder if she actually fancies the Weasel.

Malfoy closed his eyes and sighed. Why should I even be wondering if she likes the Weasel?

He turned off the shower wrapped a towel around himself and stepped out of the shower. Hermione was standing two feet away from him with a death glare on her face.

"How DARE you! What were you _thinking_??"

Malfoy grabbed the towel around his waist and held onto it tighter.

"What was _I _doing? What were _you _doing you mean!" he spat back at her.

"I was having a conversation with a friend of mine and the last time I checked _'Hogwarts: A History' _that wasn't against the rules!" she said, punctuating the last few words with a pointy fingernail in his chest.

His back hit the cool glass of the shower cubicle. Staring down at Hermione, he realised why he was so mad. He was mad that she had let Green touch her, and she had touched him back. Was what they shared in Snapes office nothing??

Malfoy stopped himself in mid thought. He was thinking about Herm-GRANGER as if she was his girlfriend…as if she _meant _something to him.

He stood up straighter and began to advance on Hermione.

"I don't like you _Granger_." He said quietly. He took another step forward.

"Infact…I _hate _you and all of your kind. All of you mudbloods." He said the word as if it had a bitter aftertaste.

Hermione tried to back away but Malfoy grabbed her by the arms, spun her and slammed her up against the same pane of glass that he had been pressed against only moments before. Her heart began to beat wildly. Malfoys gaze dropped to her neck. He could see the fragile flutter of her pulse beating there. Once again his mind wondered into places that shouldn't exist. It was driving him mad. He had to rid his mind of her. He had to prove to himself that he wasn't going mad, that he wasn't doing the one thing that even his mother would disown him for…

Hermione opened her eyes. She hadn't even realised that she had closed them. Malfoy was gazing down at her, his pupils dilated to the full. A small breath escaped from between her lips.

"I. Hate. You." he whispered and covered her lips with his own.

A/N: This chapter is extra long to make up for the amount of time it took me to post. I've noticed that loads of people read a new chapter but only a couple or so review. Unfortuanalty I lost my ability to read minds when I was 3 so unless you review I don't know what you think of the story! Please review ;o)


	15. Not until I'm finished'

'Not until I'm finished…'

'I. Hate. You.' He whispered, injecting all of his hate for mudbloods, all of his hate for Hermione into his words. Except, it wasn't hate he was feeling. The two were old friends and Malfoy was unfamiliar with the feeling that was engulfing his chest…making it hard for him to breath, hard for him to think of anything but HER.

Before he knew what was happening, he felt his lips cover Hermiones…felt her stiffen in his arms. He kissed her harder. The girl in his arms was unyielding.

Well, that should get her out of my head, he thought. It's like kissing a block of wood!

Just as he was about to pull away, he felt something at the back of his neck. He concentrated on it for a moment then realised what it was. Hermione had brought her hand up to his neck and her fingers were playing with the bottom of his hair. He pulled back slowly and looked down at the girl he had a grip on. She looked back up at him with a defiant stare; taking her hand away from him and setting it back down by her side.

Draco made a move as if to kiss her again and was surprised when she didn't jerk away. He felt as if time had slowed down. He slowly took her hand in his and placed it back where it had been. Hermione inhaled and Draco felt as if he had been draw in with her intake of breath. He was suddenly kissing her again and this time it was no block of wood he held in his arms. He lips were soft and giving, her hands wondered up and down his back making him shiver. His own hands were still griping her arms like a vice. He didn't know whether he could trust himself not to do something he'd regret. Something he'd regret even more than what he was already doing that is. He tightened his hands even more and found that they were now around her waist. He didn't remember moving them, but he liked where they had ended up. She had taken off her school robes and was now only wearing her skirt and shirt. He was pulling the bland piece of clothing out of her waistband before he had even finished realising what she was wearing.

Something's wrong, he thought hazily, something even more wrong then us kissing…

This thought was swept from his mind when his hands came into contact with bare skin. Al he could think about was how soft she was. Slim without being skinny. He traced the curve from her ribs to her hip and she let out a sigh, arching into him. His mind was whirling. Every time he thought about pulling away he found himself kissing her harder, moving his hand further under her shirt, pressing them closer together. He didn't under stand what was happening but for the first time since he had started thinking about her other than to hate her, he didn't care. He felt good, content and was enjoying himself more than he would have imagined possible.

Sighing, he slowed the kiss so he could bring his heartbeat under control. He moved away from her mouth and kissed a hot trail along her jaw to the back of hear. Pausing, he inhaled her scent. She smelled like strawberries, but underneath that she smelled like a fresh cook breeze.

'You always smell so good Rissa.' He breathed into her hair.

The next thing he knew he was on his backside trying to keep his towel from slipping and giving her an eyeful.

'Rissa! RISSA!?' Hermione screeched. 'I _knew _you were playing with me! I just _knew _it! What is your problem Malfoy?!'

Draco stared up at her and shook his head. He didn't know what his problem was, except for the fact that although she was seething mad with him all he could think about was how good she smelled…how good she tasted.

Struggling to get up and maintain his dignity, he sat on the side of the bath. When he looked back up, he found Hermione glaring at him.

That's a look worthy of my mother, he thought absently.

'Draco Malfoy,' Hermione began in a small voice full of loathing, 'If you _ever _touch me again, so help me Dumbledore himself won't be able to undo what I'll do to you.' With that, she walked out of the bathroom.

Looking after her, Draco realised something. He believed her.

-0-

Hermione sat on her bed and looked at herself in her mirror. Her hair was an unruly mess, her face was flushed and her lips were swollen and red. I need to brush my teeth, she thought. Her hand was a few millimetres away from the door handle to the bathroom before she stopped herself.

'Malfoy's in there,' she scolded herself. Abruptly she wiped her mouth on the sleeve of her shirt. Looking down at herself she began to go red. Her shirt had been pulled out of her skirt and was showing obvious signs of manhandling. She tore the sullied piece of clothing off her. A button landed at her feet. She bent down to pick it up. Her next though was: "why is my face wet?'

She was sitting against the door to the bathroom, knees pulled up to her chest.

Oh, I'm crying, she thought emptily. Why am I crying because of that worthless toad?

Pulling her legs closer to her chest she began to cry harder. That was the question, wasn't it?

-0-

Draco remained sitting on the bath for some time trying to figure out what was happening to him. Not only did he kiss Granger, he called her by another girl's name. He had sat around the fire in the Dungeon telling stories to the males in his class of how he had kissed so many girls that he got them mixed up and even called them the wrong name…but it was all lies. The Womaniser Malfoy had only ever kisses 3 girls in his life and none of them went to Hogwarts. And none of them were called Rissa.

He realised that not only was he getting a very bad headache, but that he had been sitting in the bathroom for a long time. He was freezing. Slowly, he stood up and went into his bedroom. He threw the towel into the corner of the room and slipped on a pair of boxers. Black of course. He had to look around for a minute or so before he found his dressing gown right under his nose. His mind was all over the place. He couldn't focus on anyone thing unless it was Granger.

'Right', he said to the room, 'I'm going to sort this out once and for all. She's probably slipped me a love potion or something. Yeah, that's it. The dirty Mudblood.'

Even as he said it, he knew it wasn't true.

Turning towards the bathroom he narrowed his eyes.

'You won't do it again Granger.'

He stormed through the bathroom and stopped outside of her door. He couldn't hear anything on the other side. She's probably brewing up another potion, he thought weakly. He opened the door, took a step into her room, and ended up on his face. Scrambling to his feet, he spun around, wand at the ready.

Hermione lay at his feet. She seemed to be deeply asleep. His thoughts were confirmed when he saw her tear-stained face. There's nothing like a good, hard cry to send you to sleep for the night. Not that it's ever happened to me, he thought, quickly burying childhood memories. Some things were best left hidden, forgotten. He put his wand away and looked at the girl at his feet. She had taken off her shirt and was now only in her skirt, socks and a plain white bra.

'Can't even undress yourself properly' he said, trying to be condescending but only managing tired.

Bending down, he lifted her into his arms. As had happened the day when he carried her to Snape's office, she turned into him and snuggled into his chest. He walked slowly and carefully over to her bed and pulled back the covers as best as he could. He laid her gently onto the red sheets and tried to pull back. Hermione's hands gripped his robe in a white knuckled grasp. He reached down, unclenched her fists and pulled the covers up around her. He gazed down upon her for a few minutes but to him it seemed like a lifetime. He took in her hair, curling around her head and spilling out onto her pillow. Her small nose that he had chided on the way back to Hogwarts but that he actually found extremely cute. His gaze found her lips, still plump and full of colour. He touched his own lips, remembering how they had felt against her mouth, her neck. Her eyes flutter, bringing his attention to her dark rimmed lashes, still wet with tears.

He reached out and touched her cheek. It was the lightest of touches, a butterfly touch yet she felt it in her sleep and nuzzled into his hand.

Abruptly, he took his hand back and left the room.

Closing his door, he leaned up against the solid wood and took a deep breath.

He looked up and caught sight of himself in the mirror.

'This has got to stop.' He told his reflection sighing.

His reflection looked back at him, smiled cruelly and in a voice the Draco didn't recognise replied:

'Not until I'm finished dear boy.'

A/N: How do you like that ending? Please review and let me know what you think. Did you like it? Hate it? I'm not the best at writing romance so this chapter was UBER hard for me. Let me know what kind job I did eh? ;o)


	16. Rita Skeeter's Story Pt i

Chap 16

Chap 16

Draco was very jittery in Divination the next morning. He knew something was wrong but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. All he knew was that talking back to himself in another voice was not normal.

It must be all of the stress I've been under lately, he thought to himself. That stupid mudblood is driving me crazy! At the thought of Hermione, Draco turned to look at the Gryffindor mob. Hermione hadn't attended this class since the day she had a go at Proff Trelawney. Thinking about it brought a smile to his face. Draco believed in divination and knew that it was a very powerful magic; his own grandmother had been most proficient in the art, but he didn't believe old batty had any idea what she was doing. Most of the time she just para-phrased from the book and predicted someone's death, most notably Potter's. Today she was harping on about 'the power of dreams.'

"The power of dreams is highly under-rated in Wizard society" Trelawney yelled over all of the sarcastic 'ooohh's and aaahhh's' coming from the Slytherin side of the classroom and the loud snores coming from the other side.

"A witch or wizard can learn much about the past through their dreams…" she said in a spooky voice.

Draco's mind switched off. What a load of hippogriff dung! Needing something to occupy his mind other than thoughts of Granger or losing his mind, he took out the copy of The Daily Prophet that he had borrowed off Pansy. Staring up at him was a wizard with a shock of silver white hair. Just as he was about to read the article beneath, Proff Trelawney's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Open you mind to what is around you in your dreams; many important facts may be hidden in plain view."

What a load of codswhollop, he though again. Hidden in plain view? That's the most stupid thing she's ever said, and that's saying a lot! Draco looked back down at the paper and turned the page. Scanning through it he found nothing interesting. Typical.

As Draco entered the Great Hall for lunch, he felt dozens of pairs of eyes following him. This was not unusual for Draco, however he usually had an idea of why people were staring at him. Today, he didn't have a clue. Sitting down between Tweedle Dumb and Tweedle Dee, he grabbed a sandwich and started eating. Looking up, he noticed everyone at his table staring at him also.

"What?" he asked around a mouthful of ham and cheese.

Everyone looked at each other in surprise, then back at him. A pale 5th year girl pushed something towards him. It was The Daily Prophet that he had already scanned and found nothing interesting in.

He glared at the girl. "Yes…?" he asked quietly.

She looked around her in a bid for help. None was offered.

"It's…it's about your father…" she stuttered.

Draco felt like turning her into a toad.

"I have looked at this paper from cover to cover and there is no mention of my father anywhere in it" he hissed at her. She paled even more.

Looking down at the paper in front of him he felt a wave of dizziness come over him. He fought it with all of his might then suddenly, it was gone. He looked down at the paper again and saw the same Wizard he had seen in class this morning. This time, however, he also saw the heading above the Wizard:

"_Is this Lucius Malfoy's kidnapper??" _

As Draco continued to look at the heading, it changed to:

"_This is Lucius Malfoy's kidnapper!!" _

for the briefest hint of a second and then back to the original heading. Beneath the wizard was an article that Draco didn't remember seeing the last time he looked at the paper. It was blurry at first but the more he stared at it and the more he tried to read it, the clearer it became.

"_Dear readers, it is I, Rita Skeeter bringing YOU the news you WANT to read!!_

_I have spent the last number of weeks gathering information from a number of sources close to the matter and I can reveal to you, in a Daily Prophet exclusive, that the wizard referred to only as 'Frost', is indeed responsible for the disappearance of Lucius Malofy!_

_My sources reveal that Lucius Malfoy and Frost have a history of bad blood between them that dates back to the time they were in school together. The reason for this bad blood? A mystery witch! According to my sources, she was an extremely talented young witch, quite a know-it-all actually! The mystery witch caught the attention of Frost from the minute he laid eyes on her. My sources tell me that they were the perfect couple…until Lucius Malfoy noticed her also. He was determined to steal her away from Frost and have her for himself! However, the mystery witch amazingly wasn't interested and although Malfoy tried all manners of luring her away from Frost, nothing he did would work. Now, for a man like Lucius Malfoy, even as a young adult, rejection is not something to take sitting down! My sources reveal that things turned nasty and Malfoy began to torment the mystery witch! The ongoing torment was continuous up until the night of the Hogwarts Christmas ball when tragedy stuck…_

_Part ii of this riveting tale will be revealed in tomorrows Daily Prophet._

_(According to my sources) __(No actual evidence)_

_(Not a reference to Muggle borns)_

Draco read and re-read the article. Sources? HA! He thought. Rita Skeeter is going all out on this one. She must think my father is never coming back for her to write such things about him!

Draco looked up from the paper and found most of the hall staring at him or trying to cover up the fact that they had been staring at him. They too, knew that Rita Skeeter wouldn't be so bold in her writings if she thought there was even the slightest chance of Lucius Malfoy returning. Draco saw Hermione across the hall. She was looking at him but she had pity in her eyes unlike the sick humour in everyone else's'. Pity? From a mudblood!? Draco glared back at her for a few seconds then stood up and stormed out of the hall.

Hermione put the copy of the Daily Prophet in her hands down and looked around the hall. Draco was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, a stir went up among the students, Draco had arrived in the hall and was proceeding to sit down and eat his breakfast.

He looks tired, she thought. No wonder with what's going on though. She continued to watch as she saw a skinny Slytherin girl push something towards him. Draco said something to the girl then glared at her.

He's quite cute when he's trying to look scary, she thought airily. No Hermione, she scolded herself. After last nights antics! I'm never going to talk to him again, she told herself as she continued to watch him.

He was reading the Daily Prophet. His face closed down until it resembled a marble statue. He looked up at the faces surrounding him, and then he met Hermione's eyes. He glared at her for a few seconds, and then stormed out of the Great Hall.

"Hermione, are you ok?" asked Ron. "I mean, you look totally out of it." He hurried in at the look she gave him.

"I'm fine Ron, I'm just thinking. Some of us do that sometimes you know." She said sarcastically.

Harry looked between the two of them and raised an eyebrow. Ron just shrugged and continued to eat his breakfast.


End file.
